Seasons Saga: Winter
by Sarcastic-Bludger
Summary: What if Remus Lupin had a half-brother? What if that brother had a daughter? What if both of the parents died, but Remus wasn't old enough to care for his niece? What if that niece were sorted into Slytherin, but was friends with Bill Weasley? This is the story of Keegan (Lupin) Winter. It is the entire story, from the sorting to the final battle. (Title changed)
1. Autophobia

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing but the storyline and any original characters. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling._**

(Also, immediate Spoiler Alert. This is slightly AU, but it will follow the canon story almost perfectly, so if you haven't read/seen the entirety of the Harry Potter series, I don't recommend reading this)

* * *

_Prologue: __Autophobia- Fear of Being Alone_

Her lithe body stood still. Chin-length dark brown hair framed a sharp, angular face. Everything about her was hard at this point. Eyes that used to brilliantly shine were now dull and filled with pain. An anguished scream fell from her lips when she saw the fallen soldier.

She looked around the room desperately. The Boy Who Lived was nowhere to be found. His companion, Ronald, was kneeling next to the body of his dead brother. She sees William and his wife standing near Ronald. She can't find Hermione at all.

Her breath catches in her throat as she recognizes the body next to her uncle. She runs to them. The fallen Auror's hair is still bubblegum pink. Her hand is clasped in that of her husband's. "I'm so sorry," she whispers. "I'm sorry I never supported you two. I promise I'll raise him the way you would've."

She backs off from the couple. At least in the After Life they'll be together with no prejudice against their relationship. She looks around the Great Hall again, hoping to find anyone. Any of the people she attended Hogwarts with. Any person she considers family. Even someone she's merely an acquaintance would do. She doesn't care who it is. She just doesn't want to be alone.

Finally, her eyes rest on a blonde woman. The woman stands tall. She runs to her and they meet each other in a tight hug. Tears fall from both women's eyes. "What am I to do?" She asks the woman desperately. "She's dead, Peyton. They're both dead. Isaac is nowhere to be found. Bill is trying to hold his family together. I'm alone."

The fear is prominent in the girl's eyes. The blonde woman, Peyton, kisses her forehead. "You're never alone, Keegan. Yes, Tonks is gone. I'm sorry. Uncle Lupin is gone. I understand how you feel. I understand the terror you're feeling right now because you can't find your friends. I can't find Ana."

Her heart stops. "What is this?" She asks. "What are we dealing with?"

"War, Keegan. We're dealing with war."

* * *

_AN:_It's back... My HP fanfic is finally up and running! The Prologue is a future event, but the entire story will be all of the events before, and leading up to, the Battle of Hogwarts. This means that it will be a rather long fanfiction since Keegan (that's our main character) is in the same year as Bill Weasley and the story starts in her first year. Updates on this will probably be highly irregular as I'm attempting to write another HP fic and the sequel to Spoils of War at the same time. And also, exams. So, Read and Enjoy. Chapters 1-3 will definitely be up today/tonight, and more will eventually follow.


	2. Neophobia

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing but the storyline and any original characters. Everything else belongs to J. K. Rowling. _**

* * *

_Chapter One: __Neophobia- Fear of New Things_

On Platform 9 ¾ stood three women. One was an adult, a Squib actually. The next two were her very different children. The elder of the two would be a third-year Ravenclaw. Her name was Peyton Winter and like her little adoptive sister, she was a victim of the war. Both girls had their parents stolen from them during it; both girls were taken in by the Winter family.

The other girl, however, would be the one more deeply tied to future events. This eleven-year-old girl was of an average height for her age, and a healthy thinness. Her name was Keegan, and like her adopted sister had two years prior, she had a feeling about what house she would be sorted into. The knowledge made her anxious. How was she supposed to be a good witch in a House full of Death Eater's kids?

Her mother sensed what she was feeling and smiled down at her. "Keegan, you do know there is nothing wrong with being a Slytherin, don't you?"

Sighing, Keegan nodded. "I know that you should be proud of whatever house you're sorted into at Hogwarts. The Sorting Hat doesn't make mistakes. But Peyton said that none of the Slytherins are nice, and I know that things might be better now that You-Know-Who is dead. I'm just worried."

"Ambition is a trait you should be proud to have, my daughter. Cunning is only harmful when used that way. If you are sorted into Slytherin, that doesn't mean you can't be friends with other houses. Your birth mum was a Slytherin and your dad was a Ravenclaw. Interhouse relationships _do _exist, though I wouldn't count on being friends with a Gryffindor."

"Do you think I'm going to be a Slytherin, Mum?"

Carina Winter shrugged. "I think you're going to be whatever you're meant to be. Now hurry, you need to get a compartment on the train. I love you and I'll see both you and Peyton at Christmas. Write to us, sweet."

"Yes, Mum."

* * *

The small girl finally came to an almost empty apartment. There was only one other person in there, a red-haired boy. She opened the compartment door. "Do you mind if I join you?" She asked politely. The boy gestured to the seat across from him.

"I'm William Weasley, but call me Bill," he introduced himself. "Hi, Bill, I'm Keegan." They shook hands and then animatedly began talking about the Wizarding World.

"I'm going to end up in Gryffindor, no doubt about it. My family's been there for ages." Keegan's easy smile faltered. She'd really enjoyed talking to Bill. Surely he'd want nothing to do with her now. "What about you?" He asked.

"My sister Peyton is a third year Ravenclaw, but we're both adopted," she mumbled.

"So?"

"So, while my adoptive mum is a Squib and my adoptive dad is a Muggle, my birth parents were both wizards. Dad was a half-blood Ravenclaw. Mum was a Pureblood Slytherin," she says the last sentence so softly Bill can barely make it out.

"Slytherin?" He asked, surprised. "You don't seem like the type, but we aren't at war anymore. Who cares if you're a Slytherin? Just because most evil wizards come from that house doesn't mean you're guaranteed to go bad. Frankly, I don't think you could."

Keegan's frown easily blossomed back into a wide grin. She couldn't believe her luck. This boy that would surely be a Gryffindor didn't care that she would probably end up in Slytherin?

Another girl entered the apartment. She was tall and held herself with pride. When she spoke it was with a thick, Italian accent. "_Ciao, _I am Alexandrina DiMercurio. You have no issues with me joining you, _si_?"

"No, not at all."

They spent the next two hours getting to know each other better. Keegan found herself hoping that Alexandrina would also be a Slytherin. She desperately wanted somebody else in the house she knew would be hers.

As the sky darkened, Peyton entered the compartment. "Keegan, two kids I don't know, you guys need to get your robes on. We'll be arriving soon. Kee, can I talk to you?" Keegan nodded and got up, walking into the corridor with her sister.

"Look, Kee, I think we both know you're going to end up in Slytherin. I don't have an issue with it. Ravenclaw and Slytherin have a healthy respect for each other. But the moment someone gives you hell for being a half-blood in that House I want you to speak to me or to your Head of House. I've no idea who your new Head is. Professor Slughorn retired last year. Anyway, you can come to me at anytime. Mum's already written a letter to Professor Dumbledore explaining about your anxiety. As soon as you feel overwhelmed or feel an attack coming on, _tell a professor_. Am I understood?"

Keegan, who had been listening intently to her sister's lecture, threw her arms around Peyton. "I understand you completely, Peyton." She buried her head in her sister's robes. "Thank you for taking care of me."

"You're my little sister, even if we aren't related by blood. Of course I'm going to take care of you. I love you. Now go get your robes on before you lose points for a House you haven't even been sorted into."

* * *

"First years over here!" The giant man called out. Keegan flinched back in fear and Bill laughed. "Don't worry, Keegan. That's just Hagrid. He's a lot less scary than he looks. Mum and Dad told me we have to ride the boats over since we're first years. We won't take the carriages till second year."

Alexandrina, Keegan and Bill made their way over to the boats. They climbed into one but there was a fourth seat open. The half-giant, Hagrid, guided a young boy over to them. "Introduce you," he said kindly.

"I'm Bill, this is Keegan and Alexandrina. You are?"

"I'm Isaac. W-What are your blood statuses?" The boy asked the question, clearly scared of the answer. It was obvious to all three that the boy was Muggleborn. None of them considered that a bad thing, but only a Muggleborn could be that scared on the way to Hogwarts.

"Blood status doesn't matter," Keegan said gently. "I'm a half-blood. Bill here is a pureblood but all the staunchly pureblood families consider the Weasley family blood traitors. You know his parents fought against You-Know-Who? Alexandrina is a pureblood too. I promise you have nothing to fear because of your blood. It doesn't matter. Your bloodline doesn't determine your magical ability."

"Are you sure?" He asked softly. All three of the others nodded.

The boats landed on the shore and the first years poured out. Hagrid lead them up to the castle. It was in a large entryway that a stern-looking woman met them.

"I am Professor McGonagall, the deputy Headmistress and Transfiguration Professor. You are about to be sorted into a House. There are four Houses, equally as good as the next. The first is Gryffindor, for which I am the head. The others are Hufflepuff- the Head is Professor Sprout, Ravenclaw- under Professor Flitwick and Slytherin who's Head is Professor Snape. Doing good things will earn your house points. Breaking rules will cause you to lose points. I recommend doing your House proud; after all, it will be your family for the next seven years."

After the ghosts moved through the hall, causing squeals from the girls and shouts of "wicked" from the boys, McGonagall lead them into the Great Hall.

McGonagall set the Sorting Hat onto the stool. Almost immediately the hat opened its mouth and began to sing.

_"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,_

_ My job is to sort young arrivers_

_ Into the houses of four founders_

_ You might be a Slytherin _

_ They're cunning and ambitious…" _

Keegan stopped listening to it after a while. Of course, there would be six other chances to listen to it in the future. She was too nervous to listen then, and the fact that the Hat started out singing about Slytherin didn't help matters anyway.

The sorting began almost immediately. Ross Aran was sorted into Gryffindor. Nicolai Bane into Hufflepuff. Linda Brinkwell into Ravenclaw. The list continued until McGonagall called out "DiMercurio, Alexandrina."

Alexandrina walked up to the stool. She didn't look quivering and anxious like most of the first years had. No, Alexandrina was the epitome of confidence and maturity. The Sorting Hat sat on her head for only a few moments before it shouted "SLYTHERIN!"

Keegan breathed a sigh of relief. She won't be alone!

Keegan tuned out again until she heard Isaac being called. Isaac Eranfeld was almost immediately sorted into Hufflepuff. "I saw that coming," Bill told her softly. Keegan nodded. From what she'd been told about Hufflepuff, Isaac seemed like a perfect fit.

Yana Higgins was put in Gryffindor along with Emily Jarder. James Harkins and Ryder Shacklebolt (a relatively distant relation to the Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt) were put in Hufflepuff and Slytherin respectively. Again Keegan stopped listening until she and Bill were the last two left.

"Weasley, William." Bill squeezed her hand tightly before going up to the hat. The hat barely touched his head when it yelled out Gryffindor.

"And Winter, Keegan."

Keegan walked up to the hat, trying to appear as nonchalant and confident as Bill and Alexandrina had. McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on her head and it began contemplating.

_I remember your parents. Aster Black was a Slytherin. Romulus Lupin was a Ravenclaw. But I don't sort based on parentage, Ms. Winters, not most of the time anyway. You are ambitious, persevering and resilient. You're also intelligent and loyal. Where to put you? Hmm…_

"SLYTHERIN!"

Keegan probably would've been upset, had she not known she would be a Slytherin. There had been no doubt in her mind. She just wasn't cut out for the other houses.

She sat down between Ryder and Alexandrina, watching as a buffet appeared on the table. Apparently the Headmaster would be waiting to give his speech until after they all ate.

"Welcome to Slytherin, first years," a teenage boy said loudly, gaining the attention of the entire House. "I am Adrian Brown, Head Boy this year at Hogwarts. We'll be having a House Meeting tonight in the common room. I expect each and every one of you to be there. Our Head of House, Professor Snape, will be there as well."

He sat down, silently announcing to the Slytherins that they could resume eating.

Alexandrina and Keegan looked at each other. This was going to be a lot more complicated than they'd expected.


	3. Somniphobia

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing but the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to J. K. Rowling. _**

* * *

_Chapter Two: __Somniphobia- Fear of Sleep_

"Know, acknowledge and understand that any and all mentions of the Dark Arts will not be tolerated in this house. No derogatory terms will be tolerated. If a Prefect or Professor Snape hears anyone using such terms as "Mudblood" and "Blood traitor" points will be taken and detentions assigned."

Adrian had been lecturing the house for a while. The other rules included simple things like curfew being eight o'clock for Slytherins, and lights out being ten for First, Second and Third years, and eleven for Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Seventh years. There was also the rule that if any Slytherin received a detention from any teacher, they would also serve one for Professor Snape. Speaking of Professor Snape, their Head of House stood behind the Head Boy all throughout the lecture, looking stoic and sophisticated.

Keegan was sort of impressed.

Adrian finally dismissed them, asking the Prefects to show their respective gender first years to their dorms. Alexandrina and Keegan held onto each other tightly as they entered a room with five beds all decked out in emerald green and silver. Keegan immediately claimed the bed on the far end of the room. Alexandrina took the one next to her. The other three girls took the empty ones.

"I'm Annora Brown," a short and slim girl with blonde hair and green eyes said. "Mirabelle Malfoy," the platinum blonde with blue eyes told them. Alexandrina raised an eyebrow, recognizing the name of a very dark family. "Any relations to Lucius Malfoy?" She asked.

"He's my dad's cousin." The stern look on the girl's face told Keegan to drop the discussion. She did so willingly, not sure whether or not to associate with the girl from a Death Eater's family.

_Don't be a hypocrite, Keegan. Just because she's from a dark family doesn't mean _she _is dark. You didn't want Bill or Isaac to be prejudiced against you for being in Slytherin. Why would you hold prejudice against Mirabelle for something she has no control over? Don't judge her until you know her. Don't judge her period. _

The final girl in their room was a quiet one by the name of Annalisa Dean. No one recognized her surname, and no one brought up the subject of blood status in regard to her. Keegan smiled at her briefly. Then she remembered what Annora said, and she turned back to the other girl.

"Are you Adrian's sister?" She asked. The other girls in the room demanded the answer as well. Having close connections to the Head Boy could prove extraordinarily useful in future events.

Annora nodded swiftly. "Our brother, Erik, is a fifth year prefect. He's a Ravenclaw. Mum and Dad weren't pleased about that. I expect they'll be much happier with my being a Slytherin. Especially since my older sister, Catrina, turned out to be a Ravenclaw last years as well. Oh well, it's better than Gryffindor I suppose. Mum and Dad might have just disowned them if they were Gryffindor."

The subject of family was completely dropped after that, and each of the girls turned to their respective areas. Annora and Mirabelle began to write home. Annalisa was quietly unpacking, trying to stay out of everyone else's ways. Keegan made a mental note to invite her along with the group if they ever did something fun. She doubted Annalisa would make many friends otherwise.

Keegan slowly began unpacking. Alexandrina smiled, and started the process as well. Mirabelle and Annora looked up as they began this. Both girls seemed surprised.

"Why are you unpacking by hand?" Annora asked. "The house elves can do that for you."

"I prefer to take care of my own things, Annora," Keegan murmured. The truth was, when she was living with her Uncle, they didn't have luxuries such as House Elves. Growing up, Keegan was taught to take care of her own things lest she not continue to have them. She'd had chores as well; both her Uncle (young as he may be) and her adoptive family were of the firm belief that chores taught responsibility.

* * *

Keegan sat on the edge of the Forbidden Forest, not actually going in as she knew Snape would give her serious detentions if she did. Her locket was open in her hands. The smiling image of Aster and Romulus Lupin looked back at her on one side. A picture of a younger, less serious Remus rested in the other side of the locket. She smiled fondly at the jewelry. It was the only thing that she'd actually wanted from her childhood home.

Her eyes glanced up at the sky, admiring the sunrise. "Mornings in Devon have nothing on the sunrises here," she murmurs. Absentmindedly, her finger strokes the locket. Moments later she clasped it back around her neck. "If only I could sleep long enough to miss them."

As beautiful as the morning sky was, Keegan would've done anything to sleep more than four hours. Alas the nightmares plagued her that night the way they had for five years. No matter what her uncle or adoptive parents did, the nightmares never left. Most times she woke up fighting the effects of extensive usage of the Cruciatus Curse.

"Ms. Winter," the drawling, sarcastic voice of her Potions Professor began, "what are you doing out of bed before curfew ends?"

Keegan didn't meet her professor's gaze. "I apologize, sir, but I needed fresh air." Her body twitched and Keegan let out a hiss of involuntary pain. Snape raised his eyebrows, clearly recognizing the effects of an Unforgivable Curse.

"I don't suppose you've had any run-ins with a Death Eater, Ms. Winter?"

"Only in my nightmares, sir."

"Follow me."

Keegan knew instinctively that his order was to be followed at all costs. That knowledge had her running after the suddenly moving teacher. His robes billowed out behind him, making it easy for Keegan to follow.

He led her down to his office in the dungeons. Flinging his door open with a simple flick of his wand. He sat down behind his desk in a graceful movement and gestured for Keegan to take the one in front of him.

"You are adopted, correct?"

"Yes, sir."

"But you are of magical descent?"

"My parents were Romulus and Aster Lupin."

To her surprise, Snape sneered at the name Lupin. "I'm well acquainted with the Lupin family. I presume that you were there when your parents were killed?"

Keegan kept her eyes downcast. She bit her lip to keep back tears. "You presume correctly." Snape nodded once. "Who killed them?"

"Bellatrix Lestrange cast both curses."

"And the Cruciatus was used on you as well as your parents?"

"It was not the spell that caused damage to me, Professor. It was watching my mother be tortured to death at the age of six."

Keegan stood. "May I be dismissed?"

"You may. I will see you Friday for your first Potions lesson."

Keegan left, ready to seek out Peyton. Snape analyzed the conversation.

_She shows all the signs of depression. She is oddly independent for a first year, though I haven't seen her interact with her older sister. She covers her emotions. There is a high possibility that she is a natural Occulemens. I need to keep an eye on her. Whether she wants me to or not. _


	4. Atelophobia

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing but the storyline and original characters. Everything else belongs to J. K. Rowling._**

* * *

_Chapter Three: __Atelophobia- Fear of Imperfection _

Peyton was the type of girl to always watch out for her little sister. Some might even go so far as to say she was a Gryffindor about it. After all, protectiveness was a very Gryffindor quality, but Peyton rarely cared about that. Keegan was her baby sister. Nothing mattered more than her safety and happiness. That was why she found herself knocking on the dungeon bat's door.

She'd had to wait for her first Potions class to meet the new Head of Slytherin (which had been her first class on the first day of school). She may be overly protective, but she was still a Ravenclaw. She knew to go about this cautiously, hesitantly. There were only so many ways to tell a professor that your sister was the victim of extensive abuse and dangerous panic attacks. Of course, if the young Head was even remotely competent, he would've already recognized the signs in her.

"Come in."

She heard the words. They came almost immediately. They also came with a surge of annoyance. The annoyance obviously came from the Professor. Peyton was too anxious to feel anything similar to annoyance.

She stepped into the office and Snape was already looking at the doorway expectantly. "Miss Winter, what do you want?"

"I need to talk to you about my sister, sir."

Now Snape looked interested. '_Of course he's interested. Keegan is one of his snakes.' _The thought came to her immediately. _'Maybe he won't get mad at me for bringing this up. After all, Keegan is a Slytherin, and he must have her best interests at heart… right?' _He gestured for Peyton to take the chair in front of his desk. She did so gingerly. Whether he'd get mad at her or not, this was still going to be her most awkward confrontation with a teacher since she started at Hogwarts.

"What, exactly, do you have to say?"

"Keegan has only lived with my adoptive parents and I for two years, sir. When she was three, she watched Bellatrix Lestrange kill and torture both of her parents before having an Unforgivable used on her as well. For six years she lived in an orphanage. By the time she came to my family in her Uncle's arms, she looked like Death was ready to take her. She's had so much abuse she isn't mentally stable, sir. And I worry about her being a half-blood in a house full of biased purebloods."

Snape raised his eyebrows. He had, of course, known of the Winter girl's parents' deaths. She'd told him mere hours ago. He had not, however, known about the abuse she'd suffered at the orphanage. Now he wondered just how damaged the little first year was.

"You do not think I am capable of caring for my students?"

He enjoyed the look of terror that made its way onto the Ravenclaw's face. He admired (not that he'd ever admit it) the girl for having the guts to come to him. He didn't exactly approve of the girl's protectiveness though. He might go so far as to call her clingy.

She waved her hands in denial. "That isn't what I meant at all, Professor! It's just that Keegan is my little sister, and she isn't the strongest physically. It doesn't take much for her to have an anxiety attack. But she doesn't like to accept help either. Carina and Liam didn't even tell Keegan that they wrote Professor Dumbledore about her anxiety. And I didn't know whether or not the Headmaster told you, and I didn't want Keegan getting hurt because no one knew…"

"Miss Winter, you are rambling. Thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention, but I assure you your sister is safe in my care."

It was a clear dismissal, but the Ravenclaw didn't seem to pick up on it. Snape released an internal sigh. "Ms. Winter?"

"Yes, sir?"

"Get out."

"Yes, sir."

She scrambled to leave and Snape found himself smirking. Maybe teaching wouldn't be so bad after all. He shook his head, clearing those thoughts away. There was something he needed to do. Something he didn't realize he would ever do.

He had to award House points.

"Five points to Ravenclaw for having the guts to tell me they were concerned for one of my snakes." Ravenclaw gained enough points daily that no one would really notice if he gave them five points. And really, the points were for his own house. Winter's actions saved him from taking possible points later from Keegan for failing to tell him of medical issues.

He glanced at the clock and sighed, loudly this time. The Winter girl did a successful job taking most of his only break period. In ten minutes he would be expected to be in the Great Hall, attending lunch. This could actually work in his favor, as he had more than one student he needed to keep an eye on.

Two of them were Slytherins: Keegan Winter, and Alexandrina DiMercurio. He was… concerned for Winter's health. Especially after what her sister told him. He was unconcerned for DiMercurio, but he did wonder why the Italian student would bother with the little English half-blood. He knew of Alexandrina's family. He knew they were a prominent Italian pureblood family, and they were most certainly not a family to cross. If he had to resort to Muggle comparisons, then the DiMercurio family was probably the Italian Mafia of the Wizarding World.

Then there was a Ravenclaw, a Hufflepuff and a Gryffindor. The Ravenclaw was, quite obviously, Peyton Winter. The Hufflepuff (and he scowled at the thought of one of his snakes being friendly with a badger) was Isaac Eranfeld. The Gryffindor was, unfortunately, Bill Weasley. He remembered the boy's family from the few meetings he'd had to attend for the Order, and he was most unpleased with the friendship.

But it was not his place to dictate Interhouse relationships, even if he did strongly dislike him. As long as his snakes followed his rules, there would be no issues. As long as his snakes followed his rules, he would put up with them being friendly with lions.

* * *

Keegan sat with Isaac, Bill and Alexandrina underneath a tree by the lake. Scotland in late fall was already getting to be a little chilly, but the group of first-years had their school robes on, so they didn't mind much. Each child had a sandwich and they were quietly eating while carrying on a conversation.

"So what classes has everybody had this morning?"

All four students had already been through two classes. The Slytherins had Charms and History of Magic, both with the Ravenclaws, but neither Slytherin knew what their friends had had. And so they were told.

"Well, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff shared both morning classes. We had Herbology and Charms," Bill told them. Alexandrina nodded in response, glad that her question was answered.

"We had Charms as well. I'm assuming we had it before you, but we also had History of Magic." She glanced at Keegan. "And I have to admit, the class was not as interesting as I'd hoped. You'd think that if it were taught by a ghost, it might actually be a fun class."

"History of Magic is taught by a ghost?" Isaac asked, slightly awed. Keegan and Alexandrina exchanged looks. "Yeah," Bill said. "Apparently he just died one day and kept teaching. They've never bothered to hire a living guy. Mum said Binns was a ghost even when she and Dad were here."

"What was wrong in class today, Keegan?" Alexandrina asked softly. She'd watched the other girl have what appeared to be a panic attack, but she'd seemed to have control over it. "Nothing," Keegan muttered in response. Alexandrina shook her head. "I don't believe that. What was wrong in Charms?"

"I didn't do the spell right. That's what was wrong."

"Keegan, nobody does a spell right on their first try," Bill said gently. Keegan shook her head in denial. Tears began to well up in her eyes. "You don't get it. Of course you don't."

"How can we possibly understand if you don't explain it?" Isaac demanded. Nobody in his Charms class got the spell to work the entire period. Why was Keegan so upset about it? She was a Slytherin, not a Ravenclaw. She wasn't expected to be a know-it-all.

"It doesn't matter. I'm just a bit of a perfectionist I guess."

"Being a perfectionist shouldn't make you have panic attacks," Alexandrina said in disbelief. Keegan shot her nasty look. "I wasn't having a panic attack. I was just upset, alright? Can we please drop this?"

The other three friends seemed hesitant. Bill even bit his lip. He was debating internally. If they dropped it, Keegan would feel better immediately. If they didn't drop it, Keegan might run away from them, but at least they could tell a teacher. But how could they tell a teacher? They had no way of knowing whether it was a serious problem or if Keegan was just overreacting.

Bill decided to let it be. After all, there was only so much three eleven-year-olds could do. Especially if Keegan didn't want help.


	5. Enissophobia

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing but the storyline and any original characters. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling._**

* * *

_Chapter Four: __Enissophobia- Fear of Criticism_

The third of September, a Friday, brought the three things Keegan was anxiously awaiting: a letter from Carina and Liam (because they were always Carina and Liam in her mind, even if they were Mum and Dad in person), a letter from Uncle Remus, and her first Potions class. Tuesdays and Fridays were the days that First year Slytherins and Gryffindors would have Potions. It would also be a double period, and the only thing they had before lunch.

She glanced over at the Ravenclaw table and was pleased to see that Peyton also received a letter from their adoptive parents. She unrolled the scroll from Carina and Liam. Her eyes devoured the letter.

_To our Dearest Keegan,_

_ We were pleased to learn that you were placed in the House you'd expected. Yes, we knew already. Professor Dumbledore sends a letter home to the parents of every first year with their House mentioned. Peyton wrote already this week and told us you'd made some friends. We're pleased to know that. Your Dad was terrified that you wouldn't make any friends. Uncle Remus and I knew better. _

_ Speaking of your Uncle, he wasn't too happy to learn that you were sorted into Slytherin. Don't be worried though. He isn't upset with you. I think his pride is just hurt. He probably wanted you to be a Gryffindor, like him, but I think you'll be quite content where you are. _

_ Do write soon, Keegan. I know you'll be busy with homework, but if I have to write Professor Snape (yes, we know who your Head of House is) to make sure you're taking care of yourself, I will. Eat well, and consistently. Don't stress out too much about classes. You'll do fine. _

_ All our love, Mum and Dad_

She rolled the scroll back up and stuck it in her bag. Of course she would take care of herself. She could be trusted to eat well, but why would she not stress about schoolwork? Schoolwork was important!

She shook her head, pursing her lips. Maybe she should just move on to Uncle Remus' letter. She could write back to Carina and Liam at a later time. Not too much later though. She didn't fancy the idea of Carina writing Professor Snape to make sure she was eating.

Uncle Remus' letter was shorter, but not necessarily sweeter.

_Hey Cub,_

_ Slytherin? Honestly? You're a snake? _

_ Oh well, no accounting for taste. Anyway, how is first year? Have you had Potions yet? I heard your Head of House was Snape. If he gives you crap for being my niece, tell me immediately. I'm willing to put the past behind us and make amends for your sake, but I don't know if he will be. _

_ Carina is being a worrying nag. She says we're both too thin. She also said you could spend the Christmas holidays with me. I have a steady job again, so we should be good for the holidays. Peyton will spend a few days with us toward the end of the break. You're welcome to have a friend or two over for a while as well. No boys for overnighters though- not unless they want to sleep on the couch._

_ Write soon, and don't let Snape bully you._

_ Affectionately, Uncle Remus_

While Carina and Liam's letter annoyed her, Uncle Remus' letter made her smile like a giddy little school girl. It was her Uncle that found her in that god forsaken orphanage and took her to Dumbledore. It was her Uncle that approved of the Winter family, and allowed her to stay with them as long as they allowed him to continue seeing her. It was her Uncle that continuously cared for her, even though he was very young (her Uncle was only twenty-two). But he was the only close blood relative she had last.

Drina (that was what the four friends decided on for Alexandrina's nickname) looked over her shoulder. Her nose wrinkled in distaste.

"Why does your Uncle call you 'Cub'? And who is Carina?" She demanded quickly. The people obviously meant something to Keegan, and she wanted to know all of the people that meant something to her friend.

"My Uncle has a fascination with wolves," she lied, "so he calls me Cub. Carina is my adoptive mum."

Keegan frowned, thinking about what she'd just said. Drina was a pureblood. She probably wouldn't be too accepting of Uncle Remus being a werewolf. Bill probably wouldn't mind though. _'That was hypocritical_, she thought. _Bill is just as much a pureblood as Drina.' _

She shook her head, determined to drop the subject from her mind. Uncle Remus probably didn't want any of her friends to know about his furry problem. So the entire thing was irrelevant and she didn't need to worry about it.

A quick glance at the clock told her that they had twenty minutes until Potions. If she finished eating quickly, she could still leave with fifteen minutes to spare.

Five minutes later, Drina and Keegan met Bill at the doors to the Great Hall and began the long walk to the Dungeons. "We just came from down here," Drina whined softly. Keegan sent her an indulgent smile. Bill rolled his eyes. "Wimpy girls," he muttered. Keegan elbowed him sharply and Bill let out a quick 'oof'.

"Keegan!"

The girl shrugged and smiled innocently. She gave him a look that screamed "Who, me?"

They were only in the Dungeons for three minutes before Professor Snape swept into the room, ready to start the class. His eyes scanned the classroom. They settled on Keegan for a mere moment before moving on.

"There will be no senseless wand-waving in my class. There will be precise measurements, movements and a thorough understanding of theory. I can teach you many things, if you are willing to put in effort and learn. Amortentia, Polyjuice, the Draught of Living Death; these are all things I can teach you to brew. That is, of course, if you aren't a bunch of insolent twits."

Keegan, along with most of the other students, flinched. Snape's eyes roamed the room again. This time when they settled on Keegan they didn't leave.

"Winter, if combined, what would I get with a bezoar, mistletoe berries and unicorn horn?"

Keegan swallowed. "An antidote to common poisons, sir."

Snape narrowed his eyes. Obviously, he hadn't been expecting his students to read ahead the night before.

"Weasley, where would I find the bezoar?"

Bill met his gaze, unflinching. "In the stomach of a goat, sir." The Gryffindor boy felt protective of Keegan. He didn't like the way Snape immediately singled her out. He didn't like the way Keegan held herself when Snape tried to demean her. It worried him. He didn't think Keegan had a very high self-esteem level.

Snape turned to the third friend. "DiMercurio, why is the usage of mistletoe berries in an antidote to poisons ironic?"

The Slytherin closed her eyes, thinking. "It's ironic because mistletoe berries are poisonous in their own right. Also, a bezoar doesn't need to be put into a potion to be used as an antidote. It will cure most poisons on its own."

Snape could find no faults with the answer, except to tell Drina that she needn't be a know-it-all.

He moved to the front of the classroom again.

"Today you will be brewing a Sleeping Draught. Since the likelihood of any of you making a competent potion is next to naught, we will not be testing these potions. Your midterm, however, will be to turn in a paper on the theory behind the Sleeping Draught and to brew a vial of this potion from memory. You will find the instructions to do this on page five of your textbook. You will turn in a vial of whatever you manage to come up with at the end of the class period. Do this without speaking. You may begin."

Bill could almost see Keegan beginning to panic. Drina was also capable of seeing this occurrence. They could do nothing though, as Snape refused to allow anyone to speak. Drina was at the same table as Keegan, and Bill was at the table behind her, but that meant nothing if they couldn't speak to each other.

Keegan seemed to push herself into a sort of zone. She followed each direction as the book wrote it specifically. It wasn't until she got to the step of gently heating it that she screwed up. There were no controls on the cauldron. You had to control the temperature of the potion with your wand. It was the first spell Professor Flitwick showed them, knowing they would need it for Potions. That was the spell that Keegan failed to master.

She screwed up the heating of her potion, and immediately knew the potion was completely ruined. She didn't know what to do, but Snape was sweeping the room again. He glanced at her potion and his upper lip curled in a sneer. "You failed to hear it properly," he said. From any other teacher, it would've sounded like he was offering constructive criticism. Keegan knew he was just insulting her.

"Yes, sir," she murmured. If she retaliated it would probably end in a detention. Snape sighed and with a wave of his wand, he wiped her cauldron clean.

"Do it again."

And she did, repeatedly. Each time, however, she failed to cast the heating spell correctly. Each time, her potion was ruined at the tentative stage where the cauldron had to be gently heated for thirty seconds. Snape criticized her each time, and Keegan could feel her panic attack coming on.

The time came for the class to be dismissed. Keegan buried her head in her hands. It felt like the walls were closing in around her. She fought tears as she heard Snape's order to stay behind. The Slytherins had a free period before lunch, and it appeared that Snape intended to keep her until she brewed it correctly.

She could feel Drina and Bill staying back. She glanced at them. "Go," she whispered. Snape watched the interaction carefully. He could _see_ the hesitance DiMercurio and Weasley felt at leaving Winter in the classroom with the malevolent dungeon bat.

"Get out. Miss Winter will be along as soon as she brews a competent Sleeping Draught."

Bill's back straightened. He met Snape's gaze. "Sir, Keegan can't cast the heating charm. That's why she's failing to brew the potion. Surely you saw that every stage of her potion was perfect before that stage?"

"What I saw is none of your concern, Weasley. Get out of my classroom."

Drina tugged on Bill's hand. The two reluctantly left the dungeon room and Snape rounded on Keegan.

"Why can you not cast a simple heating charm? It is the first thing Flitwick teaches the first years."

Keegan fought the anxiety she could feel sweeping over her mind. "My magic lends itself to water, sir. Fire and I don't get along."

"Your name means fire."

"I'm aware, sir. My parents must have had a sense of humor."

Despite himself, Snape found the corner of his mouth twitching upward.

"Cast the spell, Winter."

Keegan murmured the incantation, but nothing happened. Snape analyzed her movements. She was doing everything correctly. A thought came to him.

"Miss Winter, are you afraid of fire?"

Keegan stiffened. "No, sir."

"What are you afraid of?"

"Are you trying to ask the cause of my current anxiety?"

Surprised the chit had enough nerve to be at all defiant towards him, Snape nodded. "Yes, I am."

"Enissophobia, sir, the fear of criticism."

Understanding dawned. "Until you stop being afraid of failing to cast the spell, Miss Winter, you will not be able to cast it. You will not be able to stop fearing failure until you dismiss this fear of criticism. You will be criticized your entire life, Miss Winter, but you will not be able to be a witch if you allow this fear to inhibit your spell casting."

He took a step closer to you. "I will not criticize you if the spell does not work." Keegan stared up at him. "Do you understand me, Miss Winter?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good, now cast the spell."

This time, the spell worked.

"Thank you, Professor," Keegan whispered.

"Don't thank me yet. Ten points from Slytherin for failing to come to your Head of House about this problem, and five points from Slytherin for wasting so many ingredients. You have detention at seven o'clock this evening in which you will brew a competent Sleeping Draught. Do not be late."

Keegan smiled. She knew she'd be able to make up the points in Defense Against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration after lunch. She knew the detention wasn't really a detention. Maybe Hogwarts wouldn't be so bad after all.


	6. Achluophobia

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the storyline (with the exception of Rowling's own plot points) and original characters. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling **

* * *

_Chapter Five: Achluophobia- Fear of Darkness_

Lunch was spent the same way as they had the day before. Each first-year grabbed a sandwich, sat beneath a less-violent willow tree and carefully spoke about their mornings. Keegan refused to speak about her ordeal in Potions. Her only statement would be that Snape helped her with her problem and she had detention that evening at 1900 hours.

Isaac visibly flinched, having had Potions the evening before. He couldn't imagine detention with that particular Professor. Actually, he couldn't imagine detention with any professor. Hufflepuffs had a knack for getting out of trouble when they needed to. Isaac intended to have that knack.

Bill seemed to share Isaac's hesitance at the news of Keegan's detention. The idea of a detention with the dungeon bat appealed to him even less than it did to Isaac. The only difference was that Bill understood. Professor Snape was Keegan's Head of House. Why wouldn't she feel comfortable with him? Bill wouldn't be too worried about a detention with Professor McGonagall (even though everyone knew she showed absolutely no favoritism ever). Isaac wouldn't be horribly upset if he got a detention with Professor Sprout.

Heads of Houses were supposed to be the adults that a student could truly depend on at Hogwarts. The general rule was that there was _nothing _you could not go to your Head about. For Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws, that seemed understandable. Professors Sprout and Flitwick were rather approachable teachers. Even Gryffindors seemed to have no issues approaching their Head.

Slytherins were different. Slytherins were _always _different. Their Head was notoriously unapproachable, and it wasn't even specifically Snape. Slughorn was unapproachable before him. The Head before that was the same. At least, the Slytherin Head seemed unapproachable to the other Houses, but maybe he actually _was _approachable; at least for the Slytherins that is.

They were done with lunch rather quickly, and spent the last bit of time before they had to make their way to classes just laying on the grass.

Older students would observe the four first-years and come to the conclusion that they were an odd group. There were the two Slytherin girls. The one was Italian; tall and willowy, blonde-haired and blue-eyed. The other was English; short but thin, a brunette with gray eyes. Then there was the Gryffindor. He was the hazel-eyed, red-haired boy that was almost too thin for the average eleven-year-old. His height did nothing for his figure. All his extra inches did was make him seem even more likely to blow away in the wind. Finally, the little Hufflepuff existed. He was short, and a little stockier than normal around the middle. Black hair and brown eyes matched with pale skin. He was probably the oddest member of the group.

And while the physical features surely did something to make the group eccentric, so did the Houses. The war had only ended on Halloween less than a full year prior. Yet, here was a Gryffindor who was a friend to a pair of Slytherins. The Hufflepuff could be ignored in this comparison. It was the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin that truly mattered.

Some of the older students remembered the Marauders in school. They had had Professor Snape as a fellow pupil rather than just a Professor. They remembered Lily Evans. They remembered the friendship between one Severus Snape and Lily Evans. They knew the story. They knew he called her a Mudblood and that it ruined a strong, albeit oftentimes painful, friendship. They were the ones who wondered just how long this motley group would remain friends.

Most knew it wouldn't take long.

Keegan was enthusiastic about Defense Against the Dark Arts. Drina and Bill were almost puzzled by it. Rarely did any child show such happiness about attending a lesson. They, of course, had no real way of knowing what truly happened to Romulus and Aster Lupin. Therefore, they would not understand Keegan's need to defend herself. The English child was determined that she would never be that helpless again.

Alexandrina was the opposite. She hated Defense Against the Dark Arts. Her family reveled in the Dark Arts. They were, of course, a jaded pureblood family. The DiMercurio family was the Italian Royalty of the Wizarding World. They were the Italian version of the Malfoy family. They may not have openly aligned themselves with the Dark Lord when he waged his war, but they certainly hadn't been averse to it either. Now, Drina found herself amongst people who had been against the war. Now she had to cover up her family's alliances. That was after all the purpose behind Drina's attendance at Hogwarts.

So, entering the DADA classroom had very different effects on the two Slytherins. Keegan's chin went up. Her shoulders pushed back. Here was the class she could excel in. Here was the reasoning behind her purpose! Her happiness was so great that she failed to notice Drina's downcast eyes and hesitant stance.

The Professor was a tall man with a short beard and white tufts of hair at the top of his head. Keegan didn't know what to think of him until he started speaking. She'd made a point at Hogwarts to only judge a teacher after she had his or her first lesson (and even then she didn't really want to judge), so she refused to judge Professor Kaplan based on his looks. Even if he did look like one good puff of air from the Big Bad Wolf would knock him down.

The Professor looked his class over. He acknowledged that the class easily segregated themselves. Slytherins sat on one side. Gryffindors sat on the other. Each of his classes so far had been like this. The only exception was that group of three at the very front of his classroom. Two Slytherins and a Gryffindor. He pondered that grouping for a moment before shrugging and moving on. House rivalries were not his concern. The welfare of his students was.

"Tell me the technical name for the fear of darkness," he ordered. The little Slytherin in the front row raised her hand. He called on her after a brief glance around the room let him know that no one else had their hand raised. Before receiving her answer, he asked her name.

"Keegan Winter, sir. The answer is Achluophobia."

Professor Kaplan nodded. "Do you know any others?"

"Several."

"Fear of heights?"

"Acrophobia."

"Fear of spiders?"

"Arachnophobia."

"Fear of enclosed spaces?"

"Claustrophobia."

"Fear of love?"

Now Keegan hesitated, but the answer soon came to her. "Is it Philophobia?"

Professor Kaplan smiled. "Yes, it is. Five points to Slytherin. Now, the purpose of this was to name some common fears. Fear is the major subject of Defense Against the Dark Arts. We teach our students to defend themselves because we fear the outcome that would befall defenseless wizards."

Keegan hung onto every word that fell from Professor Kaplan's mouth. He just seemed like a genius. She wondered what Peyton thought of him, and then realized she didn't care. Oftentimes, Keegan could be heavily affected by her older sister's opinion, but she didn't think anything could change her opinion of Professor Kaplan. He must have been one of the most brilliant men alive.

She felt a sudden sadness when the bell rang. Maybe it was because Transfiguration was not a class the Slytherins shared with Gryffindor _or _Hufflepuff, and that meant Keegan would only have Drina to talk to. Maybe it was because she didn't want to leave that DADA class. Maybe it was because each passing class only brought her closer to the inevitable detention under Snape's supervision…

* * *

Keegan _hated _Transfiguration. No, she didn't hate it. She absolutely _abhorred _the class. McGonagall (she didn't even deserve the title of 'Professor' in Keegan's mind) hadn't even given her a chance. Five seconds late to a class all the way across the castle, and she took five points off? It was her first Transfiguration class! Did these teachers not know the meaning of the word 'fair'?

So, naturally, Keegan attempted to annoy McGonagall. The Slytherin came to the conclusion that being the first student to successfully complete the Transfiguration would prove the Gryffindor Head wrong about her. She didn't want to hate Transfiguration. She didn't want to hate the Gryffindor Head. Relations between Gryffindor and Slytherin were bad enough without additional animosity between any others.

A strenuous class period led to Keegan finding success. She was indeed the first student to complete the change from match to needle. She smiled smugly when McGonagall awarded her House ten points. She not only earned back the five for being late, but she earned twice that! That was several points for Slytherin in one day, just from her!

Dinner was next. Keegan sat with Drina and Ryder Shacklebolt at the Slytherin table. The dark-skinned boy sat very close to her. Keegan passed it off as a lack of space at the table. Drina smiled as she watched her friend interact with the brown-haired boy. He was cute as a young boy, and would most likely prove very handsome as the years went on. The only thing Drina frowned on about him was his relation to Kingsley Shacklebolt. Her family didn't approve of the Auror.

The meal past by far too quickly for Keegan's liking. Dinner was only served from five thirty to seven, and Keegan had to leave early to be at her detention on time. She stood from the table at a quarter till and hoisted her bag up onto her shoulder. Adrian Brown beckoned her over just before she got out though, and Keegan knew she had to obey.

Annora was sitting next to him, and the first-year seemed surprised that her brother called Keegan over. Adrian immediately spoke.

"Where are you going, Winter?"

"Detention," Keegan answered simply. She was intent on walking away, but Brown was having none of that.

"Rumor has it you earned ten points from McGonagall, and five from Kaplan." Keegan gave a short nod. "But you also managed to lose ten from Professor Snape, and five from McGonagall? So really, you haven't earned any, and you're serving detention?"

Keegan swallowed. "I have detention with Professor Snape for failing to tell him something concerning my wellbeing, Head Boy. It is the same reason I lost ten points. I'm sorry, but I did make up for those losses. May I go to my detention now? If I'm late, I'll surely lose more points."

Brown nodded. "Go, and don't lose anymore points. Don't get detention again either."

Keegan muttered a half-assed promise. There was no way either of those things would happen. Didn't mean she wouldn't try to hold up to it though.


	7. Sociophobia

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the original characters and the storyline. Everything else belongs to JK Rowling.**_

* * *

Chapter Six: Sociophobia- Fear of Social Evaluation

Severus Snape sat behind his desk at the front of his classroom and watched Keegan approach. He gestured for her to sit in the chair before him. It was a chair he had conjured. The chair was simple. It was wooden. It was straight-backed. It was uncomfortable, yes, but a chair.

He needed the chair to be uncomfortable. Keegan would be more willing to speak if it was. She would want the detention to be over with, so as to be rid of the hard chair. This entire situation depended on Keegan's impatience. He needed her to spill, to tell him about her past. Otherwise he would be hopeless to stop her. There would be nothing he could do if she didn't let him in.

The small girl took the bait. She slid onto the chair with minimal effort, and looked at Severus. The look in her eyes was a challenge. As if they were saying "Go ahead, demand that I answer your questions." Severus readily accepted the challenge. This girl was one of his snakes, and by Merlin, he would make sure she was taken care of.

"Your sister mentioned something to me," he began. Keegan raised her eyebrows. "She mentioned that you have issues with anxiety. Care to explain that to me?"

"What needs to be explained? You already know about Lestrange killing my parents. You already know she cast the Torture Curse on me. What do I need to explain?"

Keegan's mind ran rampant. He already knew everything. At least, everything worth knowing. What was the point of this interrogation. She hated being interrogated. She hated being questioned period. It made her anxiety spike. The only thing he didn't know about was the three years between Uncle Remus finding her and her parents being killed. But the orphanage couldn't be worth mentioning, could it? After all, weren't all orphanages as bad as the one she'd been in? She found it hard to believe that any of them were much better.

As if he heard her thoughts, Severus proposed a new question. "Your sister told me that you've only been with her and her family for two years. Your parents were murdered at the age of six. What happened between the time you were six and nine?"

Keegan faltered here. She didn't see the point in talking about it. However, her Head of House demanded that she answer. There were only so many ways one could work around a question. And she'd only been a Slytherin for a few days. Her Head of House had been a Slytherin for at least a decade. There was no way she could compete with that.

"I um I…" She trailed off, unable to form coherent speech.

Across from her, Severus was beginning to lose his patience. "Speak properly, girl," he ordered. Keegan shook her head.

"It was just an orphanage. There's nothing special about it!"

He began to catch on to her unspoken words. "Why don't you tell me about it? I don't care if it wasn't special to you, but tell me about it. Give me a synopsis of your everyday life when you were at the orphanage."

Keegan bowed her head. She began to whisper. Severus had to strain to hear her, but the strain was worth it for her words held much value.

"It was always dark. The Matron said it was because they couldn't afford the electricity, but the Master said it was because we didn't deserve electricity. The older ones knew that was true, because the Matron and the Master had electricity in their rooms. It was also cold."

She wrapped her arms around herself, as if remembering the chill. Her eyes darted around the room. Jars filled with disgusting potion ingredients. Cauldrons that held half-brewed potions from the NEWT class. She looked at all of it. She looked at everything but her professor. But she always returned to protecting herself against the cold.

"The clothes weren't rags but they weren't exactly warming either. The food was almost decent, if we got the porridge. The porridge was much better than some of our other meals. The material things never bothered me though, so I don't see why this is important."

Severus was attempting to maintain his composure. "Why don't you tell me about the runners of your orphanage. You called them the Matron and the Master?"

"The Matron could be nice to us, if we followed the rules. The Master hated us I think. He wasn't very nice to any of us. Most of all to the non-magic kids."

"Why would there have been muggles at a magical orphanage?"

"Not muggles, squibs."

Understanding dawned. He wanted more answers, but he knew enough to decipher the rest of the situation. "Keegan, when did you show signs of magic?"

She bit her lip. "Uncle Remus says I did a lot of accidental magic before Mum and Dad were killed. I didn't do any magic after that though. We didn't think I'd be going to Hogwarts till I got my letter."

He dismissed her. He knew enough now. The rest would work itself out in time.

It was only as she left that Keegan realized Professor Snape hadn't made her brew the potion she'd failed so many times to make in class. Part of her brain wondered why. The other part of her brain thanked the Gods for small miracles as she made her way back to the Slytherin common room.

* * *

"How was it?" Drina asked when Keegan trudged her way back into the dormitory. The brunette shrugged. Drina's eyes narrowed. "Why won't you tell me?"

"There's nothing to talk about. It was a detention. What do you think it was like, Drina?"

"This is Professor Snape's first year teaching. I was just wondering what his detentions were like."

"It was detention."

Keegan sat on her bed cross-legged. She opened her satchel bag and began to pull out textbooks. The amount of homework she had already made her cringe. Her weekly planner also came out. Today was Thursday. She only had a couple of classes tomorrow. Classes she hadn't had today. Her mind flitted through her schedule. Herbology and History of Magic and the Slytherin first-years would have their first flying lesson with the Gryffindors that Friday.

She pulled out the twelve-inch essay on the very first Goblin rebellion that was almost entirely finished, and the three-inch essay on the properties of common herbs that was also almost finished. Her handwriting was very small, so the essays were probably much longer than they were actually supposed to be. She'd have to start writing bigger if she didn't want to do extra work as the year continued.

As soon as her rather detailed essays were done, Keegan pulled out two sheets of blank parchment. She needed to write a letter to Carina and Liam and a letter to Uncle Remus.

The letter to Carina and Liam was rather short.

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_Hogwarts is… different. I don't mind it at all. I get along fine with my dorm mates. Drina, Bill, Isaac and I are becoming fast friends. The food is good, and yes, I eat plenty. Professor Snape makes sure of that. _

_I was the first to successfully transfigure a match into a needle and I earned some points. Today, I had Potions, Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts. DADA and Potions will probably be my favorite classes. Professor Snape is a genius when it comes to brewing, and Professor Kaplan seems to really know his stuff. _

_I promise I'm okay. _

_Love, Keegan_

Her letter to her Uncle was much more in depth. Her Uncle was her confidante. Keegan often talked to her Uncle about her nightmares and her anxiety. She knew he would comfort her, but not coddle her. That was exactly what she wanted and needed. So it was often Uncle Remus she went to about the important stuff, rather than her adoptive parents.

_Dear Uncle Remus,_

_I don't know how I feel right now. _

_In Potions today, I couldn't brew the potion properly because I couldn't cast a simple heating charm. Professor Snape gave me detention and docked fifteen points. Then, in detention, all he asked me to do was tell him about my anxiety. I found myself comfortable telling him things that I'd only told you and Peyton. Is it normal to have that much faith in your Head of House? I hope it is, because I have a feeling Professor Snape truly cares about us snakes. He's not shown any animosity toward me for being your niece, and I said "Uncle Remus" in front of them several times today. The only distaste he showed toward you was a slight sneer when I mentioned that your brother was my dad._

_Drina kind of worries me. I thought when Bill and I met her, she was a really good person. But it's only been three days and I'm already seeing sides of her that I don't like. I mean, she is a Slytherin, but so am I. How does that make any sense? I think she might be a little more prejudiced than me. She was kind of snotty when she saw your nickname for me. Am I just being paranoid? At any rate, I want to be her friend, but I don't think I'll be inviting her for the Holidays._

_I told Carina and Liam that I was eating well and I felt alright, but that was kind of a lie. I've had nightmares each night so far. If you still have my sleep medications, could you send them to me? I'm afraid of those Dreamless Sleep Potions that some of the other kids take when they have bad dreams. Somehow I don't think my dreams are the same kind of scary that theirs are. _

_Also, could you check on Carina and Liam occasionally for me? I have a really bad feeling. _

_All my love, Cub._

The letter was sealed. Keegan would send it off with Persepolis the next morning. For now, though, she needed to sleep.


	8. Mnemophobia

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the original characters and the some of the plot. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.**

**_Warning: This chapter includes violence and brief descriptions of child abuse._**

* * *

Chapter Seven: Mnemophobia-Fear of Memories

Keegan fought to forget her past as she lay awake in the early hours of the morning. Leaving the dungeons would allow her fresh air and a distraction, but Professor Snape would know. It was best to stay in bed, even if that allowed the memories to plague her. She had no reprieve.

* * *

_Dark eyes and wild hair were the only things Keegan could see of the woman in front of her. She could hear the insane woman's maniacal laughter. She could hear the tortured screams of her parents. The six-year-old knew that wand would turn on her, just as she knew she was going to lose her parents that night. _

_She was right. The sound of her parents' bodies collapsing triggered Keegan's need to run. She made it five feet before Lestrange's wand was turned on her. _

_The screams of Romulus and Aster Lupin were nothing compared to those of Keegan Lupin. Lestrange was merciless. She did not simply use the Cruciatus Curse. No, she used every curse and hex in her arsenal. Whatever the Lupin family did to displease either the Dark Lord or Bellatrix Lestrange, the anger was taken out on their six-year-old daughter._

* * *

It would be many years before Keegan understood what her parents did. Aster was a Black. She was the not-so distant cousin of Bellatrix herself. It was the ultimate betrayal to Lestrange when Aster not only turned her back on the arranged marriage contract, but married a half-blood instead. Keegan was the child of that union. To Lestrange, Keegan was the physical representation of Aster's betrayal.

While Bellatrix used many curses on Keegan, nothing ever did compare to the pain of having the torture curse used on her. The lasting effects from the Unforgivable brought some of the worst pain imaginable. Five years later, Keegan still could not escape the aftershocks. The years between that night's torture and her arrival at the Winter home just made everything worse.

* * *

_Two years earlier_

She tried to ignore the other residents of the orphanage, she really did. But ignoring the jeering comments and snide remarks was more difficult than it sounded. They were not kind to the small girl. The insults that passed their lips were harmful. Each and every one of them forced her to bite her lip in order to prevent tears.

She was never a strong child. Always fighting colds and getting bruises from a small fall. She'd been babied by her parents, but for good reason. She always seemed to be on the verge of fatal injuries. Now, she wished she died. She wished the scary woman killed her like she killed her parents. Maybe the insults wouldn't hurt so much if her parents were physically there to support her through them.

Oh, she knew they were there. They often spoke in her ear, or comforted her in a dream. Those were never _real _encounters though. She figured they were watching over her but that didn't bring a lot of comfort.

And she had no idea where Uncle Remus was, but she knew she missed him. Why hadn't he come to get her out of this place? Why hadn't he taken her in to raise her? He had his furry little problem, but surely that didn't stop him from caring for her, did it? Since he hadn't collected her yet, she guessed it did.

The kids weren't even the worst part. The Master was.

Master was a very bad person. Keegan was old enough to understand that. She knew that he hated the Squib children even more than he hated the Magical kids. And no one thought Keegan was Magical.

She didn't do accidental magic. She didn't do purposeful magic. What did it matter that she'd done magic before her parents died since she could hardly remember those times? All she _really_ remembered was her father's gentle smiles and her mother tucking her in at night. And she remembered Uncle Remus, but who could forget Uncle Remus? How she longed to be called 'Cub' again…

She could feel the Master coming. Intuition the older kids called it: a way of knowing how to survive. No one believed that it was actually magic, especially her. No, it wasn't magic. She knew it wasn't magic. She couldn't _do _magic. It was just a good sense of hearing.

Her body stiffened in fear. Her mind slowed as caution took over. She began to think over every encounter with the Master. How many of them ended in a painful kick or a punch to her cheek? How many bruises had she attained in the last three years at his hands? Recently? Not as many. She was getting good at knowing how to get out of encounters with him without being bruised. Now it was time to put her knowledge to the test.

He didn't talk to her. He just grabbed her arm and started towing her to the front of the building. The front of the building was where adoptions took place. Once a month the kids all put on presentable clothing (they all had one outfit that was presentable) and were examined by a few couples looking to take home kids. Almost every time the couples left the orphanage empty-handed.

Single adoptions rarely took place. People rarely bothered to come in and ask about specific kids; unless they were family members looking for other family members.

Keegan wasn't naïve enough to hope for that.

She should've been.

* * *

_Present_

That was the only memory of the orphanage that actually made Keegan happy. She remembered running to Uncle Remus. She remembered his arms wrapping tightly around her. Her face nuzzling into the crook of his neck as she felt happy emotions for the first time in several years. She remembered him introducing her to Carina and Liam. She remembered Peyton becoming a protective older sister within an hour of meeting her.

It was not these memories she feared.

No, she feared the memories that brought about her anxiety. She feared the memories of the Master's degrading comments. She feared the memories of the Matron's anger when she was provoked. She feared remembering how the other kids hated her. She feared remembering how she hated the other kids.

She feared Bellatrix Lestrange, and anything that brought her memories of her. She feared the aftershocks of the curses.

She feared the unhappy memories.

She feared the ones that brought her pain.

She feared the darkness they brought.

She feared the darkness.


	9. Agoraphobia

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the original characters, and any unrecognizable plotlines. Everything recognizable belongs to J.K. Rowling and Co.**

* * *

Chapter Eight: Agoraphobia- Fear of Crowds

Keegan sat in a circle on the floor of the Slytherin common room. Ryder, Mirabelle, Annora, Alexandrina and two other first year Slytherins: Julian and Caleb were seated in the circle. The group of first years was tucked away in a safe corner where they wouldn't get in the way of all the older students.

"What are we doing?" Keegan asked a note of apprehensiveness tinged her voice.

Mirabelle smirked making Keegan uneasy. A glance at Ryder told her that she wasn't the only one Malfoy made concerned. Ryder inched closer to her, making her smile. She liked Ryder. He was fun to be around, and he wasn't a blood supremacist. The Shacklebolt family was neutral during the first Wizarding War, though most would tell you that they fought on the side of the Light. Keegan could believe that. Ryder seemed to have too kind a heart to be on the Dark Side.

"We're playing Hufflepuff or Gryffindor."

"What?" Julian demanded.

Mirabelle sighed. "It's Truth or Dare. We're playing Truth or Dare."

A chorus of understanding noises sounded from the circle.

"I'll start. DiMercurio, truth or dare?"

Drina swallowed. Keegan smiled encouragingly at her.

It was obvious how this would work. If you picked truth, then you were a coward and the others would shun you. If a person picked dare, then the person giving them the dare would do their absolute best to humiliate them. There was no way to win in this situation, but none of them could back out. That would be even worse than picking truth.

"Dare," the Italian girl said confidently. Mirabelle's smirk became even more devious. "At breakfast tomorrow, I dare you to confess your undying love to the first Gryffindor student that enters the Great Hall."

Drina swallowed. "I accept."

Mirabelle made a waving hand gesture. Drina took this as her signal to ask her choice of person.

"Keegan, truth or dare?"

Keegan groaned but ran a hand through her hair. "Um, dare. I'll go with dare."

"I dare you to answer the next five questions anyone asks you with the complete truth."

Keegan shot Drina a nasty glare. "I accept. Caleb, truth or dare?"

"Dare."

"You know my sister Peyton, right?"

"The Ravenclaw?"

"Uh huh. I dare you to stalk her for the next three days."

"She's going to hex me!"

"Maybe you shouldn't have stolen my chocolate frog yesterday at breakfast."

"You're vindictive!"

"No, I'm a Slytherin."

* * *

Suddenly, the Potions room seemed a lot smaller than it actually was. Keegan closed her eyes trying to calm her breathing. Luckily, that day's potion was a partner project. Bill could handle the cauldron for a minute or so while Keegan calmed herself.

Her breathing was far too shallow, but at least she was breathing. Bill hesitated to put the next ingredient in, hearing Keegan's difficult breathing. "Are you okay?" He demanded. She shook her head rapidly. What was wrong? Was it a panic attack or an asthma attack? Or both? Her lungs hurt. Asthma.

The coughing started soon after the harsh breathing started. She fumbled to open her bag and grab her inhaler. Bill pulled her shaking hands away from the satchel and pulled her inhaler out of the little pocket. He said a quick, silent prayer that the pocket holding her inhaler was so clear. The Red Cross on the tan pocket was blaringly obvious.

Unfortunately, he had no idea how to use it. "Professor, something's wrong with Keegan," Bill called out. Severus was beside them in seconds. He eyed Keegan's shaking hands, the inhaler in Bill's and listened to the loud, raspy breaths coming from her lungs.

"Give me the inhaler, Mr. Weasley," Severus demanded. Bill quickly handed the inhaler over, instinctively knowing that Snape was a much better choice to care for Keegan than he was. Severus held the inhaler up to Keegan's lips and the first year took over. She attempted to breathe in the pump medicine. Her lungs hurt in doing so.

"Weasley, take Miss Winter to the Hospital Wing. Inform Madame Pomfrey that I will be up to speak with her as soon as my lessons are over for the day."

"Yes , sir. What about our potion?"

"You can redo it Saturday morning."

Bill sighed. Somehow he'd seen that coming. He grabbed Keegan's bag and his own before wrapping an arm around Keegan's waist and heading for the Hospital Wing. The extra potions time was nothing to worry about. Not when his friend was still having trouble breathing.

* * *

"She's my niece," a familiar voice said insistently.

"She's my student," the drawling voice of her Head of House responded.

"Neither of you should be in here. This child needs a lot more sleep. Only when I declare her healthy can either of you interrogate her. Remus, what's going on that you're here?"

"There's been an accident, Poppy. Something that Keegan and Peyton need to be told in person, not through a letter or their Headmaster. Although I'm nervous to tell Cub now that she's had a panic attack."

"It was an asthma attack, Lupin."

"Yes, it was. However, her asthma attack triggered a panic attack. I know how her lungs and her mind react to situations."

"I'm okay, Uncle," the first year whispered. She attempted to sit up but Madame Pomfrey immediately pushed her back down. "You are in no condition to sit up, Miss Winter. You need to rest."

"Severus, Remus, you should not be in this Hospital Wing. I will not have you pestering my patient."

"I'm fine, Madame Pomfrey. I'm just a little tired. Uncle, what's going on?"

"I'll tell you in a little while, Cub. Why don't you tell Professor Snape and I what triggered your attack?"

"I don't know," Keegan whispered. She kept her eyes downcast. Severus shook his head. "I think you do, Miss Winter. I recommend that you inform us before I assign you a stream of detentions."

Remus gritted his teeth. He obviously disagreed with the practice of threatening his niece with detentions if she didn't tell them what happened. However, he had to admit that Snape's practice would probably work. He looked down at his niece. She was too quiet. She wasn't normally this quiet.

It's an inaccuracy. It has to be inaccurate. Keegan couldn't be at this level of depression. He would've noticed. He should've seen it. Keegan couldn't… He can't have failed her. It's not possible. It's not _right_. It isn't fair. He can't have missed it. She had to be okay. She had to be alright. Otherwise, it was his fault. Otherwise, he failed his brother. Otherwise, he failed _her_.

Keegan swallowed hard. "There were too many people. The room was too small. I think there was a floral scent. It was a crowd. I didn't like it. I couldn't stand it." Her last words were whimpered. She sat up and drew her knees up to her chest. They could see her tears land on the sheets beneath her. Her suppressed sobs sent pangs through Remus' heart.

"Keegan, sweet heart, you're okay." Remus sat down beside her and drew her into his arms. Keegan clung to him, crying. "Carina and Liam are gone, aren't they?" She whispered. Remus stroked her hair. "How do you know, Cub?"

"You said there was an a-accident. The only option is them."

Remus sighed and just hugged her tighter. "I'm so sorry, Cub. I'm sorry I couldn't save them."

"Get Peyton. I need Peyton."

Remus met Severus' eyes.

The two could never be friends. There was too much animosity between them for that. There was too much pain in those memories for them to be friends. No, they could never be friends, but for Keegan's sake, they could work together.

Severus left in a grand movement which caused his robes to fly behind him. Moments later he would return with Peyton. The two sisters would be able to mourn. The logistics of their situation could be dealt with later. For now, Keegan and Peyton needed each other, and Keegan needed rest.

* * *

_AN:_ Whoop! Update! Victory is mine. Please review- it makes my day (or night by this point) better. Thanks to everybody that has reviewed, favorite or followed so far. Snow day tomorrow, so you can probably expect another update.


	10. Thanatophobia

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the original characters. Anything recognizable belongs to J.K. Rowling and Co.**

* * *

Chapter Nine: Thanatophobia- Fear of Death

Keegan and Peyton clung to each other as they listened to the Muggle Minister preach his sermon. The two girls wore simple, black dresses while their escorts, in the case of Remus and Severus, wore black, Muggle suits or in the case of Minerva McGonagall, wore a more mature black dress. Keegan hadn't understood why Professor McGonagall was told to come to the funeral until Peyton explained it. The Headmaster couldn't justify sending two young girls out with only male supervision. It didn't matter that one of the supervisors was Keegan's Head of House. Personally, Keegan thought it was a stupid rule. Neither of the professors had any reason to be at the funeral of her adoptive parents.

The funeral was far too emotional for Keegan's liking. She knew that Carina and Liam were of more Irish descent than anything else. They wouldn't have liked the idea of a mourning funeral where everybody cried. No, Carina and Liam would've preferred a funeral where everyone had a few shots from a bottle of Bailey's and then told stories about the stupid things the pair did when they were in their twenties. They wouldn't have wanted their bodies to be on display the way they currently were. They would've preferred a cremation and then the party. Keegan couldn't help thinking how wrong this funeral was.

Peyton's occasional squeeze of her hand made the brunette feel better. Either Peyton was also uncomfortable, or she was just really upset and attempting to make herself feel better by reminding herself that her sister was there. Keegan didn't mind. She needed to know that Peyton was there as well.

She could feel Professor Snape's eyes on the back of her head. He and Uncle Remus were both really worried about her. She could understand that. Her health wasn't at peak conditions at the moment, and she was prone to panic attacks in the most average of situations. This was most definitely not the most average of situations. This was a scary situation. It was made scarier by the fact that Keegan had no idea what was coming next. Would Uncle Remus get custody of her and Peyton? Would they have to go back to the orphanage? Would they be separated?

Keegan's pulse sped up. She couldn't imagine being separated from Peyton. She'd die! Peyton was her sister, her best friend, her protector. Aside from Uncle Remus, Peyton was the only family she had. They couldn't be separated, could they?

She shook her head. This was her adoptive parents' funeral. She needed to focus on them, and remembering her happy memories of them. Surely, the situation would be taken care of by capable officials. This wasn't something she needed to be worried about at present. She would only succeed in working herself up.

Peyton released her hand to go up to the piano. Keegan took note of the tears in her sister's eyes and made a plan so that the two could spend the night together. They were both likely to have nightmares and only each other's presence would fix them.

Peyton's fingers on the keys were magical. Keegan smiled fondly every time she heard her big sister play, but today there was something especially emotional about her playing. Maybe it was because she was playing for her parents' memory. Maybe it was because she was playing in her sister's presence. Or maybe, it was just because she was playing.

* * *

"Do you ever think about it?" Peyton asked Keegan when they stood together in front of their parents' new gravestones. Keegan looked up at her. "Think about what, Peyton?"

"Dying. Do you ever think about dying?"

"I'm an anxious, panicky, traumatized eleven-year-old. Of course I do. Why do you ask?"

"Are you scared of it?"

"Of dying?"

"Yeah."

"Peyton, I watched Lestrange torture my mother and father into insanity and then kill them when I was six. There are worse things than death. Am I afraid of it though? I don't know. I certainly don't like the idea of dying. I have too much to live for. We both do. Death is just the logical continuation of life though, so no, I don't think I'm afraid."

"Do you think Mummy and Daddy are afraid?"

Tears fell down both girls' faces. Keegan bit her lip to stifle the sobs. Peyton didn't even bother. The sobs wracked their bodies. They clung to each other through hugs. Keegan tightened her grip on Peyton's neck as the older girl wrapped her arms around Keegan's waist and refused to let go.

"Yes, Peyton, I think Mummy and Daddy were afraid, but I don't think they're scared now."

"Good, I don't want them to be afraid anymore."

* * *

"I am afraid, girls, that we must discuss the issue of who will take guardianship of you," Professor Dumbledore said gravely. Professor Flitwick and Professor Snape were in the room along with Remus and Emmeline Vance. Flitwick and Snape were there as the girls' Heads of House. Remus was there, obviously, due to his blood connection with Keegan. Emmeline was there because of her being Carina's sister.

"Well it is obvious, isn't it? Uncle Remus will take custody of both of us," Peyton stated. The declaration of the thirteen year old was met with blank expressions and dead silence. Dumbledore appeared to be collecting his thoughts before replying to the Ravenclaw girl.

"Unfortunately, Miss Winter, that isn't an option. Due to Remus' furry little problem, as you two so aptly put it, he cannot take custody of anyone _legally_."

Keegan narrowed her eyes. "You emphasized legally. Why?"

"Spoken like a true Slytherin, Miss Winter. Theoretically, the two of you could reside with Remus and be cared for emotionally and physically by him. This is only if you have a legal guardian in the eyes of the Ministry. The Ministry of Magic will expect both of you to have legally registered guardians who house you, feed you and above all, care for you. Due to certain laws, Remus cannot do this."

"So, who do you have in mind? Neither Keegan nor I have any living relatives aside from Uncle Remus. I suppose we could go with Aunt Emmy, but how long would that take to register with the Ministry? She has no legitimate claim to us aside from her sister being our adoptive mother." Peyton's concerned eyes met Professor Flitwick's. "Wait, Professor, we are staying together, right? I mean, you can't separate us. If not for my sake, then for Keegan's!"

Keegan swallowed. "I don't think they mean for us to stay together, sis."

"No, I won't deal with this. You can't separate us, Professor Dumbledore. It was your idea to place Keegan with a family who had a girl around her age to begin with! You can't go back on that now."

"I am truly sorry, Miss Winter, but the Ministry will expect us to. You and your sister have no blood connection. They will expect you to be separated. It is my idea for Emmeline to take custody of you, Peyton, and for Professor Snape to take custody of Keegan."

"You've got to be joking!"

* * *

_AN: _I said you could expect the next chapter today, didn't I? Victory. In other news, I have the first ten chapters of Hero of War planned out and once I have them fully written will begin posting the sequel to Hero of War again!

I promise you, Snape is not going to become Molly Weasley in Dad form. There's no way. I wouldn't do that to anybody. No, Snape is going to remain his grouchy, sarcastic self and he just might adopt a slight small spot for Keegan. More than likely, Keegan will spend all of her breaks with Remus and the only time she'll deal with Snape is during the full moon. Or when she gets in trouble at school. He'll probably pull the guardian card and give her extra detentions or something when that happens.

I want your guys' opinions. Who do you think says the last line? Peyton? Keegan? Remus?


	11. Asthenophobia

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the original characters. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling and Co. **

* * *

Chapter Ten: Asthenophobia- Fear of Weakness

Peyton and Keegan turned to stare at Professor Flitwick in shock. Professor Dumbledore simply tapped his fingers on his desk. None of them had expected such an outburst from Professor Flitwick. It didn't make sense! Flitwick was much better at showing happy emotions; he showed just as much control over his less happy emotions as Snape did. They'd expected Snape to have the outburst if no one else did. Certainly, he was the most justified. Flitwick though? They couldn't understand Flitwick.

"Headmaster, you are going to ruin that little girl if you make her live with Severus. Can you imagine the amount of bullying she'd receive from her peers?"

Keegan swallowed. One look at her Head of House told her all she needed to know. The resident dungeon bat wanted this about as much as the rest of them, save Dumbledore, did. He hated Keegan! He didn't want to teach her, let alone have to raise her.

"Filius, I assure you, Severus would have custody of Miss Winter in name only. She would be free to spend as much time with Remus or Emmeline as they will permit."

Keegan stood up. She held the gaze of the blue-eyed Headmaster. "Headmaster, there has always been a fine line between right and wrong; the line between hard and easy is not so undefined. Despite that knowledge, the line between what is right and what is easy can be very clear. The choices we make regarding that line are the most important. What you're asking us to do is what is easy, but not what is right."

Peyton glanced at her. She understood what Keegan was doing. She didn't always like the way her sister thought, but she liked what she was doing now. She liked the way Keegan was channeling their Mum (because in her mind Carina was always Mum).

Peyton also stood and took Keegan's hand again. "You're playing with people's lives, Headmaster. You don't really get what it is like to be a child without a real home, do you? You don't understand what it is like to finally have a family and then have it ripped away from you. I'm not just talking about Keegan and I either. I'm talking about Professor Snape and Uncle Remus. You can't do that to them, or us. I won't let you."

She squeezed Keegan's hand. "You can't tell us to what is easy over what is right. As a patron of the Greater Good I wouldn't expect you to condone that. I expect you'll still try, but listen to us."

Keegan moved closer to her sister. "He isn't going to, Pey. I just hope, Headmaster, that at some point in your life, you are capable of making the right decisions over the easy ones."

Keegan took off running out of the office. With a look at Remus that was begging for help, Peyton ran after her. Severus crossed her arms.

"Congratulations, Albus. You've been told off by an eleven year old and a thirteen year old."

* * *

Keegan and Peyt0n were sitting on the dock when Emmeline, Remus and Severus found them. Keegan was wrapped in Peyton's arms with tears falling down her face. The older girl had tears in her eyes as well but appeared to be attempting to stay strong for Keegan's sake.

"So, who has custody of us?" Peyton asked softly.

"How is she?" Remus asked while ignoring Peyton's question.

"How would you be? She's lost two sets of parents in five years, and she just got told that she isn't allowed to live with her only remaining birth relative. Plus, everyone keeps trying to separate us."

Keegan tightened her grip on Peyton and the older girl responded by whispering simple reassurances to her. "I'm not letting anyone separate us, Kee. Don't you see that yet?" Keegan shook her head and just keep crying.

Severus appeared uncomfortable with the situation. Crying first years weren't his specialty. In fact, he'd so far sent almost all of the sobbing first years to his highest ranking female prefect, Elaina. However, he needed to get used to Keegan's crying if her reaction to him being her guardian was anything to go by.

"Who has custody of us, Uncle Remus?"

"Professor Flitwick and I have joint guardianship," Severus responded. For a split second, Peyton stiffened. "I suppose that's better than the Headmaster's original plan. At least this way we can't be separated."

"I don't understand why you couldn't have custody, Emmeline," Remus said softly. The woman ran a hand through her hair. "My work as an Unspeakable doesn't lend itself to parenting. That's why I didn't take custody of Peyton or Keegan originally, in turn placing each of them with my sister. As much as I love you two, Peyton, Keegan, I just can't do it."

"We understand," Peyton responded weakly.

"Why two professors?" Remus muttered. "What is Albus doing?"

"Do you actually expect to understand Albus Dumbledore, Lupin?"

"You should leave, Uncle Remus, Aunt Emma. I'll take care of Keegan." Peyton glanced at Severus. "Professor Snape will too. Aunt Emma, you have to work tomorrow. Uncle Remus, the full moon is in a couple days. Go home and get some rest and then write to us as soon as you're feeling better." Peyton stood up and hauled Keegan up with her. The brunette looked incredibly young next to her adoptive sister who appeared rather strong and mature.

"Come on, Kee, you need to eat."

The sisters made their way up to the school. Peyton was quite obviously supporting Keegan. The three young adults watched them as they left. Emmeline was the first to tear her gaze away from the girls and instead placed it on Remus and Severus.

"You and Flitwick have custody of two of the most important things in my life, Severus. I don't expect you to actually attempt this, but you will not try to keep them away from Remus or I. Those girls are going to attempt to be your family. You will accept that as graciously as you can. I do not expect you and Remus to be friends; I do expect you to be cordial. I know the Marauders wronged you in school, Severus, but don't take that out on them or us."

"I wasn't planning on it, Vance."

"Good. We all fought for the same cause. We still do. Now we just happen to have a different one."

* * *

_AN: _Like I said, Snape is not suddenly going to be ridiculously OOC. The joint custody thing was kind of a split second decision but I think it's going to work out well, especially considering Remus and Emmeline aren't exactly going to be quiet from their unofficial guardian roles.


	12. Alethophobia

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but the original characters. Anything recognizable belongs to J.K. Rowling and Co.**

* * *

Chapter Eleven: Alethophobia- Fear of the Truth

Time passed rapidly for the two girls. Their new guardians didn't have much influence on them throughout the rest of October, November and the early days of December. It wasn't till Professor Dumbledore made the announcement that students needed to discuss the Winter Holidays with their parents or guardians. Moments after breakfast ended that day, Keegan found herself waiting outside the doors of the Great Hall.

She thought back a few months to the day of Truth or Dare with her house mates. The Gryffindor Drina ended up "professing her undying love" to was a third year half-blood named Luc Allen. So far, the other Slytherins hadn't let her forget the situation, and neither had Luca's friends. Keegan was kind of impressed that she'd actually followed through. She was sure she wouldn't have.

She also remembered Caleb attempting to stalk Peyton. It'd lasted two hours before Peyton hexed him straight to the hospital wing. The only other dare worth remembering was her own. Drina later amended her dare so that Keegan had to answer five questions of Drina's choosing at any point in time. So far, Drina hadn't asked any; Keegan was glad for it.

Peyton met her a few minutes after her reminiscing. "Sorry, Kee, I had to get away from Jared and Miriam."

Keegan simply nodded in response, easily accepting Peyton's excuse. Jared and Miriam were Peyton's closest friends. They were often responsible for Peyton being late places: the two spent far too much time nagging and chattering.

"What do we do about the Winter Holiday? Who do we talk to? Do we talk to Uncle Remus and Aunt Emmeline? Professor Snape? Professor Flitwick? Are we still going to be able to go to Church? I'm not missing Christmas Eve Mass, Peyton."

Peyton hugged her quickly. "I'm not either. I got a letter from Uncle Remus this morning. Apparently the Professors talked to him. Winter Break is a week before Christmas and then through to the end of January, right? Well, the Professors proposed that we spend part of Break, through to the New Year with Uncle Remus. The only exception to that is Boxing Day, where they want Aunt Emma and Uncle Remus to come to the school with us for the day. After that, they said we could each spend two weeks with friends of our choosing before another week with Uncle Remus and then the last week of Break with the Professors here at school."

Keegan's eyebrows shot up. "You're telling me that my Head of House actually spoke to Uncle Remus to come up with something that suited all of us that well?"

"Honestly, I think Professor Flitwick had quite a bit to do with it- more so than Professor Snape, but yeah, they did. I think it works really well. Are you going to owl Bill's mum and ask if you can spend the two weeks with friends there?"

Keegan raised her hand to her lips. Biting her nails was something she did when she was thinking about a slightly complicated issue. She didn't do it for the more complicated issues, but that was only because she usually had too much anxiety when dealing with bigger issues to do something as mundane as nail biting. It didn't matter though because Peyton immediately pulled Keegan's fingertips away from her lips.

"Not that big a deal, Kee. Just as Bill if he wants you to spend two weeks at his house; then, ask him to ask his mum." Keegan nodded hesitantly. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley would be the first set of her friends' parents that she met. Judging by their son's character, they would probably be the most welcoming parents to meet. Isaac's parents were Muggles and Keegan didn't look forward to the inquisition she would most likely get from them. Drina's parents would probably be cold and standoffish. Eventually, she would meet all of them. She just didn't relish the idea of it being so soon.

"Yeah, I think I will. Wait, is the Professors' plan even allowed? I thought we had to either go home or stay here and that there was no in between?"

"Well, normally it wouldn't be okay, but because the Professors are Hogwarts staff the circumstances are slightly different. They have to transport us to and from the castle for starters. There's some other stuff, but I'm sure the Professors will talk to us before we catch the train in a few days."

Keegan nodded for a third time. "Yeah, I believe it."

* * *

The weather was suddenly very, very cold. Then again, it was the middle of December. It was also the day before the day before the Solstice. In other words, it was the nineteenth of December, 1981. They would all be headed home on the train the next day, which would be a Sunday. Peyton had informed her that students always went home the Sunday before the Winter Solstice so that young witches and wizards could be with their families on one of the most magical days of the year. Because that year's Solstice was on a Monday, they didn't really get any extra time off.

So in an attempt to spend her Saturday doing something worthwhile, Keegan found herself sitting in an abandoned classroom with Drina, Bill and Isaac, discussing their plans for the Break. For two reasons, Keegan found it odd to be in the classroom on this side of the castle. First of all, she was very used to the four friends hanging out underneath _their _tree talking about their day. Second of all, this side of the castle didn't have much going on so it was way too quiet. There was no background noise to their conversation. Anyone could be spying on them. That was an irrational fear, but still a fear. No, the only noise was Isaac talking.

Isaac was telling them that he planned to have a very normal, very Muggle Christmas, Boxing Day and everything that came afterwards until it was time to return to school.

"I just miss my family a lot, and I'm wondering whether my little sister is going to get a Hogwarts letter. It always comes on your eleventh birthday, right?"

Bill shrugged. "Not always, well not for magic-born kids. Mine arrived around the time of the Summer Solstice actually."

"So did mine," Keegan commented. "Peyton's arrived then too. Drina, what about yours?"

The blonde stiffened. "I didn't get a Hogwarts letter. My father wrote to Dumbledore and asked if I could attend Hogwarts instead of the Mozzafiato Institute."

"The Mozzafiato Institute? Isn't that one of the most prestigious magical academies in existence?" Bill asked with a raised eyebrow. Drina remained gracefully quiet. She simply chose not to answer Bill's question.

"Anyway, I'm going back to Italy for the Break. Keegan,, William, what are you doing for Break?"

"It's complicated," Keegan muttered. Drina waved her hand. Keegan shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it, Drina. It's complicated."

"Well, who has guardianship of you currently? Your adoptive parents are dead, correct? So who has custody of you?"

Keegan's back straightened. Her jaw clenched as she attempted to control her anger: she didn't want to lash out at Alexandrina. "Can't you just accept that I don't want to talk about it?"

"No I can't, because we're your friends!"

Keegan jumped to her feet; a wave of her wand had the door flying open. "When you're open enough to tell us why you didn't go to your fancy Italian Academy then I'll tell you who has custody of me!" She stormed out of the room and straight into Professor Snape.

The daunting man halted immediately, catching Keegan just before she fell to the ground. Even so the girl stumbled. A single, upward glance told her who she'd run into. Immediately she adopted an apologetic look and whispered that apology to her Head of House and guardian.

Her friends came running out into the hall when they heard Keegan's stifled yelp. Isaac then Drina and then Bill came running for their friend. In a show of great comedy, Isaac stopped dead upon seeing the Potions Professor. Of course, Isaac stopping caused Drina to crash into him and Bill to trip over the two-person dog pile that ensued. A quick look at the pile of three on the ground, staring up at Keegan and Professor Snape, was enough to kill Keegan's anger and send her into laughter.

The Professor stared at the group of four and simply crossed his arms. "What, pray tell, are the four of you doing in an unused portion of the castle and an abandoned classroom?"

The two Slytherins moved to attention: Keegan stifling her laughter and Drina scrambling to her feet and donning a solemn, uninterested facial expression. The Head of Slytherin nodded his approval. "And why, pray tell, are why are the two of you in the company of… them?" He inclined his head to gesture at the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff still on the ground.

Drina took advantage of the situation. She knew that having their Head of House in front of them would shock Keegan into answering. She also knew that Keegan's sense of honor would require her to answer. It would be a double whammy. There was no way Keegan would try to work her way out of it.

"Keegan," Drina called for her friend's attention, "I'm calling in a question."

Keegan's eyes immediately darkened. Her previously relaxed jaw clenched again. A person could almost hear her teeth grinding. The four people in her presence would see quite well how her knuckles whitened as Keegan balled her hands into fists. "Yes, Alexandrina?"

Drina knew then that she was in trouble. Now that she had a decent nickname for the Italian girl Keegan rarely used Drina's full name. For her to call Drina Alexandrina meant that she was not in a good mood. That worried Drina slightly. Keegan in a bad mood was something to be afraid of.

"Who is your guardian?"

"Professors Snape and Flitwick are the joint guardians of Peyton and I. Happy now?"

The blonde didn't respond. Nor did Bill or Isaac. All three were far too stunned to say anything. Keegan shook her head in disgust. "You shouldn't ask questions you're afraid of the answers to, Drina. You really shouldn't call in favors over things you would've eventually found out. God, you call yourself a Slytherin?"

Keegan walked away leaving three stunned first years and a rather annoyed Professor behind.

* * *

_AN: _So, we've just started the real conflict of the first book. Seasons Saga: Winter will only follow Keegan and Co. through their first year at Hogwarts. There will either be an Epilogue at the end of this book, or a Prologue at the beginning of the next that will consist of letters between Keegan and others chronicling her second, third and fourth years at Hogwarts. Seasons Saga: Spring will cover fifth and sixth year. Seasons Saga: Summer will cover seventh year and a couple of years after that. Seasons Saga: Fall will be the finale of the story, skipping ahead in time to the height of the Second Wizarding War. So there will be four books to this fanfic, and I thought I'd just let you all know how things are going to work. Please, Review, Favorite and Follow! Thank you to everybody who has so far. I really appreciate it.


	13. Ecophobia

**Disclaimer: As a relatively poor high school student, I don't own any of this. I barely own my viola. No, I just let my mind wander and warp J.K. Rowling's wonderful characters. In other words, all of this (except my original characters and any plotlines that aren't part of the Harry Potter series) is owned by Rowling and Co.**

* * *

Chapter Twelve: Ecophobia- Fear of Home

Keegan chose to ignore her fight with Drina and sit with her friends on the way back to King's Cross Station. She didn't speak much to Drina though. A fact that made Isaac and Bill more than slightly uncomfortable: they were unused to arguing girls, and did not know how to deal with it.

"When are you coming to the Burrow?" Bill asked in an attempt to divert attention from the awkwardness of the situation. Keegan turned her gaze from the scenery to glance at Bill. "It would be the second of January to the sixteenth, but only if your mom will still have me."

Bill nodded. "She said she'd love to have you for a couple of weeks. She just wanted to know the actual dates."

That was understandable. Keegan just didn't like that he hadn't asked her sooner. She was big on planning. All the details had to be solidified in stone. All the information had to be thoroughly researched. Otherwise, she was uncomfortable in the situation. Otherwise, her anxiety wouldn't let her go through with it.

They sat in silence for several hours. Keegan continued to watch the scenery through the window. She kept track of the time by watching the sun make its path across the sky. It was around four in the afternoon when Peyton showed up at their compartment and demanded to talk to Keegan.

The brunette joined the blonde in the aisle quickly. She recognized an impatient Peyton when she saw her. Impatient Peyton was not the kind of Peyton a person wanted to be around.

Peyton led Keegan to a deserted compartment at the very front of the train. No one wanted a compartment that close to the Prefects, so it was always a safe bet that there would be a couple of empty ones around there. It was okay. The Prefects liked it that way. Plus, the empty compartments were great when people needed a private talk. A talk, mind you, not a snog because the Prefects would nail people who came to the front of the train for a snog.

Peyton sat down on the bench seat across from Keegan. She looked her little sister over with a critical eye. "How are you feeling? Don't lie to me either. Bill told me you had a fight with Drina. I know your anxiety levels have been through the roof. Your depression since Mum and Dad passed has been like a beacon of light to Dementors. How are you feeling, really? Both Professors Flitwick and Snape, plus Uncle Remus, Aunt Emma and I, are concerned."

Keegan thought about telling her that she was fine. It would be quite simple. Easy, even, to release those two little words "I'm fine". It would certainly make her life better. If her family, and Guardians, thought she was fine then she would be free to wallow as she chose; as long as she didn't let on to her actual level of wallowing. She knew this idea was futile though. Peyton would never believe her. Even if Peyton did, Uncle Remus wouldn't. If by some miracle both Peyton and Uncle Remus believed she was okay, then Professor Snape was a Legilimens and the argument would be pointless. Then she would just get in trouble for lying to everybody.

"I'm not okay," she said softly. Peyton raised her eyebrows. "Obviously, but thank you for being honest. What I need to know, Kee, is how to help you. We're about to spend twelve days at our house without our parents before going two weeks without seeing each other. Are you going to be able to handle this?"

"What do you think, Peyton?"

Hesitant gray eyes met demanding blue. With a sweep of her hand, brown hair covered those hesitant eyes, blocking their open emotions from the blonde's view. The blonde released a sigh before tucking the brunette's wayward locks behind her ears.

"I think you're scared."

"What do I have to be scared of?"

"Memories."

"Of what?"

"Of home."

"Oh. I think you're right."

"I know I am."

* * *

A blinding smile graced Keegan's face when her eyes met those of Remus. A matching look appeared on Peyton's face as the two girls leapt to hug the young werewolf. He hugged them tightly. His thoughts racing: these girls were his everything. Only one of them may've been his by blood, but both meant the world to him. These two girls were his world; he would do everything to protect them.

A few seconds later, Remus pulled away from the duo to allow Emmeline to hug them. They'd decided that the four of them would stay in the house which belonged to the girls. That way both Emmeline and Remus would have equal opportunity to see the girls. They had a day-by-day plan for the three weeks the girls would spend with them that included a lot of family bonding. Both Emmeline and Remus felt the girls needed to know that they had a strong family to support them. That was easier said than done.

As the house was in a Muggle neighborhood in Liverpool, they would be driving. The car trip would take about four hours not including the necessary stops. Theoretically, they would all be home by about ten that evening.

Remus had anticipated a nice, peaceful car ride home while the girls told them what their lives were like for the last two months. The arguments between Peyton and Keegan were not something he imagined.

Currently the girls were arguing over the radio station. The twenty-one year old wizard finally got fed up with it and shut the radio off.

"Would you two just be _quiet_? You never fight! What is your issue?"

Emmeline chuckled at Remus' clear frustration. The girls glanced at each other.

"We're sisters," Peyton began.

"We argue," Keegan finished.

The younger girl promptly decided she was done arguing with her sister and adjusted her seatbelt so that she could lay across the back seat. Her head ended up in Peyton's lap. Remus looked back at them from the passenger seat as Emmeline was the one driving.

"What are you doing _now_?"

"What does it look like I'm doing? Obviously I'm taking a nap."

"Obviously. Emma, are you hearing this?"

The older woman smiled. "I hear them, Remus."

"Are you going to do anything about it?"

"Why would I? It's not my altercation."

"I thought we decided that the other person would deal out punishments so that a punishment isn't biased."

"I do recall that conversation, but I don't see why she deserves a punishment. She was being a normal, snarky eleven year old girl."

"She was being disrespectful."

"She was being snarky."

"That isn't okay!"

In the backseat, Peyton and Keegan exchanged annoyed looks. "Now who is arguing?" Peyton demanded. Luckily for the adults, the conversation was dropped. Otherwise, the Ravenclaw and Slytherin would've beaten their family members… at least in _that _argument.

* * *

December 21 was a quiet day spent talking about the stories behind the Solstice. Most of them Keegan and Peyton already knew. They knew that December 21 was the Winter Solstice. They knew that December 21 was the day almost every savior God from almost every religion was born or reborn or saved. It was the Winter Solstice that brought light back into the world; the Winter Solstice that was one of the most magically powerful days in the year.

December 22nd and 23rd were spent in London. The girls went with Remus and Emmeline to the Globe Theater, ice skating and to Big Ben amongst other places. Many pictures were taken and happiness was had by all.

Christmas Eve was spent at home at least until ten o'clock at night when Peyton and Keegan insisted on going to Mass. In the two years that Keegan lived with Carina and Liam, she'd attended Mass in the Church of England. For the three years that she'd been at the Orphanage, she'd attended Mass as well: it was one of the few things at the Orphanage that brought her the feeling of content.

Remus was uncomfortable in the Church. It made sense to Keegan. After all, he wasn't raised in any religion. He'd never been to Church. It wasn't something he chose. Emmeline wasn't totally comfortable either. But both adults knew that Peyton and Keegan believed; so they took them.

December 25th was different.

Christmas day saw Peyton and Keegan waking Remus and Emmeline up at five in the morning. The two girls were still on Hogwarts schedule, so it was nothing to them. The two adults failed to see it that way. Upon seeing the excited faces of Keegan and Peyton however, both Remus and Emmeline managed to plaster smiles on their faces and head downstairs for hot chocolate, presents and cookies.

They began with Keegan's presents. The girl handed Remus a large, wrapped box. He raised an eyebrow at it before opening it to reveal a stuffed wolf. The young adult groaned and rolled his eyes. Keegan just grinned cheekily at him.

"Look at the collar," she ordered. She gestured to the stuffed animal's collar. Remus obliged and looked at the dog tag. Apparently the stuffed animal's name was Moony. Remus thanked her and Keegan moved on to Emmeline's present.

No one saw Remus wipe a small tear from his eye.

Emmeline's present was a small locket. Inside the locket was a picture of Carina hugging Emmeline on one side, while a picture of Peyton and Keegan occupied the other side of the locket. The pictures were Wizarding pictures. So each set of sisters smiled and waved at Emmeline when she looked into it.

Peyton grinned when she saw it. "Way to set the bar high, Kee."

"I try, Pey. I try."

Peyton opened her present last. She received a book on unconventional charms from her sister. The Ravenclaw tackled the Slytherin in a hug.

"How did you get this? I've been looking for it for _ages_! There was no copy in the library: I asked. Trust me. I even braved Madame Pince to ask if there was a copy! She said it'd been bought… you _bought _this for me! Keegan, this book is really rare. It must've cost a fortune-"

It appeared that Peyton would continue with her rambling. At least until Keegan clapped her hand over her mouth it did. In true sisterly fashion, Peyton stuck her tongue out and licked Keegan's hand. The Slytherin immediately pulled away, completely repulsed. The Ravenclaw just grinned.

"Really though, thank you."

Keegan nodded. It was then Peyton's turn to pass out her presents. Remus received a book about defending oneself from vampires. She'd cheekily mentioned that he needed to be able to fight his natural enemy should he come across one. Emmeline got a bracelet with three monkey charms. Each monkey represented one of the "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" monkeys. Peyton clearly pointed out that the see no evil was obviously Remus while the hear no evil was Keegan and the speak no evil was Peyton herself.

"I got it for you because you're an Unspeakable. I know you can't tell us anything you do. I thought this kind of showed that none of us resented you for it."

Emmeline smiled, clearly touched by the jewelry she got from each of her nieces.

It was then their turn to give the girls' their presents. Peyton received a series of books on protective charms from Remus, some Muggle clothing came from Emmeline, a box candy: Chocolate Frogs, Cockroach Clusters, and a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans from Jared, a hair piece from Miriam and Carina's wedding tiara. Upon seeing the tiara, Peyton burst into tears. Emmeline reached for her and hugged her until the tears stopped and Keegan sat quietly: she knew this was Peyton's first attempt at mourning. Since the funeral, the older girl focused on keeping Keegan strong. She never took the chance to cry for herself. Now she was.

After Peyton calmed down, they continued to open presents. Keegan received a set of Defense Against the Dark Arts books from Remus. From Emmeline she got Muggle clothing like Peyton, but she also got a set of Wizarding dress robes. She briefly remembered Peyton getting a set of dress robes during her first Christmas with the Winter family. Maybe it was tradition.

Her present from Bill turned out to be in a large box. The dominating feature in the box was a comfy-looking, emerald green sweater. Knitted into the sweater was a silver 'K'. Keegan smiled at it. Apparently Mrs. Weasley was accepting her into the family. She remembered seeing Bill's "Weasley Sweater" while at Hogwarts. Drina sent her a pair of chandelier earrings that Keegan tried not to grimace at. She didn't really like gaudy jewelry, but she didn't want to offend her Italian friend. They were already fighting. Seeing the present she received from Drina, Keegan was glad she sent Drina a jeweled headband that she found in Diagon Alley earlier that week. Isaac did the same thing for her that Jared did for Peyton. He gave her a large box of candy.

The tears started up again when Keegan opened the final little present under the tree. She unwrapped it to see a ring box. Carina's engagement ring, a Winter family heirloom, rested in it. There was also a platinum chain in the box. Keegan smiled through her watery eyes at that. Remus obviously couldn't touch silver. She was allergic to gold. Platinum was the only precious metal choice left. Looking at the ring, Keegan realized it was also made of platinum.

"My sister left specific orders in her will. The house was bequeathed to both of you. The money left behind was divided into two. There is one bank for Keegan, and one for Peyton. However, funds were set up within it to be used at different times. There are funds to cover your schooling and living, your post-secondary education and your lives after that. However, that tiara was specifically left to Peyton and the ring to Keegan. She wanted you to have something to remember her by."

Keegan and Peyton ended up very close together by the end of Emmeline's little speech. Remus looked slightly uncomfortable by the family feels. Eventually, a group hug was held by all.

Christmas was fantastic for family bonding.


	14. Syngenesophobia

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything canonically associated with it. It all belongs to J.K. Rowling and Co.**

* * *

Chapter Thirteen: Syngenesophobia- Fear of Relatives

The morning of Boxing Day brought the newly established, but still incomplete, family a quick breakfast and a lot of fighting over the shower. There was a lot at stake for both Peyton and Keegan. Their new, legal guardians were the same people who would be their Heads of House for the next five and seven years for Peyton and Keegan respectively.

They intended to wear the dresses that were originally bought Christmas Eve Mass. Carina apparently picked them out months ago. Unfortunately, Emmeline didn't find them until late Christmas evening. Seeing a chance to both look pretty and honor their adopted mom, Keegan and Peyton jumped at the idea of wearing the dresses to spend the day with_ all_ their family.

Peyton's dress was dark blue with bronze trim. The fabric of the dress was a very light crushed velvet which was both modest and flattering at the same time. Carina took into account the age of her daughter when buying the dress, and she also took into account the girl's House as well.

Keegan's dress was very similar, except Keegan's dress was dark green with silver trim and made of a soft muslin fabric. Her dress did not accentuate anything as Keegan was only eleven. Carina had excellent fashion taste, and both girls were seen constantly brushing their fingers over their dresses. It was yet another connection to their adoptive mother; something both girls relished.

Eventually, the girls sat in their shared bedroom. Keegan knelt on the floor while Peyton sat on the chair behind her. The older girl was running a brush through her sister's long, brown hair. She intended to braid it, but it was such a rat's nest in its current state that braiding it would be impossible.

"Do you miss C- Mum and Dad?" Keegan asked.

"Keegan, I lived with Mum and Dad for ten _years_. Of course I miss them. What you also need to understand is that I, like you, lost my parents to the War. The difference between us is that I never really knew my parents. I was three when they died, Kee. Adrian and Linda Wilkins are just names to me. I'm sorry to say it, but it is probably the truest thing I've said since Mum and Dad died."

Peyton began to braid Keegan's now knotless hair. She had to figure out how to phrase the next portion of her statement without offending the young snake. Granted, Keegan was not easily offended; so it shouldn't be too difficult.

"I know you don't miss them as much as me. That's okay. It really, truly is. It's been almost three months. Even for me, the pain is beginning to dull. I'm starting to remember more of the good times. I'm starting to forget the pain their departure brought me. Maybe forget is the wrong word. Really, I'm just not as depressed."

Keegan nodded. The girls fell silent for a moment. Peyton recognized the need to lighten the conversation. She began to tease Keegan about her relationship with the oldest Weasley boy.

"I don't like him like that, Pey! Besides, I think Drina has a crush on him."

Peyton fell silent at the mention of Keegan's Slytherin friend. Alexandrina DiMercurio was the type of Slytherin who wasn't just ambitious; she was cruel as well. She could be someone's greatest ally, but Peyton had a feeling that Keegan and Alexandrina would grow to be enemies. As close as they were now; Peyton knew that wouldn't last. Keegan came from a fragmented past, had a werewolf for an uncle and wasn't even close to being considered a pureblood. Alexandrina was a pureblood from a family full of supremacists.

The two would never be able to fully understand each other's situations. If, God forbid, another war came to pass; then Keegan and Alexandrina would be fighting on opposite sides. The DiMercurio family was basically the Italian version of the Malfoy family.

Peyton simply wondered how long it would take Keegan to figure all of that out.

She wondered if Keegan would ever need to.

* * *

Hogwarts had never seemed so daunting. Hogwarts was normally a warm, inviting place where hundreds of students found solace and safety each year. Hogwarts was normally a place filled with boisterous laughter and excited smiles. Hogwarts was never . . . scary.

Today, it seemed to be a looming task that both Peyton and Keegan would find challenging to complete. It would not be task whose solution could be found in a simple reference book in the library. No, it would be a task that would require initiative on both their parts. It would be a task that would require intuition and open-mindedness.

The group of four was met by the main entry to the school building by the Professors. "We're spending the day in Hogsmeade," Professor Flitwick told them with a smile. Keegan grinned at Peyton.

She squeezed her older sister's hand. "Yes, Keegan, I'll make sure you get to go to _Tomes and Scrolls_," she said with an appeasing sigh. _Heaven forbid Keegan not go to a bookstore._

Snape raised an eyebrow at the interaction. "Miss Winter, I am sure no one here ahs an issue with you browsing the bookstore for a while."

His Slytherin qualities didn't seem to do anything to cancel out his love of books. Apparently the same situation applied to his young charge. That idea pleased him; though there was no way he would ever voice it.

The group made their way to a carriage which would take them back into Hogsmeade. "We will eat dinner with Madame Rosmerta in the Three Broomsticks. Before you head home; though, we must have a consultation with Professor Dumbledore. He insists on knowing how you are doing with the current arrangement," Flitwick said.

The girls acknowledged his statement with murmured consent. They weren't all that interested: Keegan was pretty intent on not moving from her sister's side. Remus and Severus were staring each other down, or maybe they were glaring at each other. Either way, a person could practically taste the tension in the air. At least, a person could until Emmeline got fed up with it.

"Would you two quit it?" She demanded. "These two girls need you- both of you. Don't you dare deny it either, Severus. You can protect them in a way that Remus and I can't. You as well, Filius. They need protection at school. There is always going to be someone out there to hurt them, especially with how involved their parents were in the war. Now, will you all just accept that we all have a responsibility to these girls? Will you all just realize that they need all four of us?"

When her rant was over, she crossed her arms and leaned back against her seat.

"She's right you know," Keegan mumbled from her position curled into Peyton's side. "We do need you, all of you."

After that the carriage pulled up to Hogsmeade and the group left their carriage. Peyton and Keegan remained close together. Their guardians watched them from behind. "Where are we going first, ladies?" Flitwick asked, seeming content to allow the girls to dictate their day.

Keegan looked up at the blonde and pouted. Peyton threw her hands up in the air. "Alright, fine, we can go to _Tomes and Scrolls_ first. God knows you won't let up on it until you have a book in your hands."

The adults, with the only exception being Severus, seemed to find it hilarious. Flitwick didn't know the younger Winter sibling very well, but he did know that she could rarely be found without a book in her hands. He often found himself thinking that the girl should've been in Ravenclaw. At least until he saw her Slytherin qualities on perfect display.

It occurred when the group was in _Honeydukes_. It took a lot of persuasion on the part of all members of the group to convince Severus to go in there with them. Keegan, however, had no reservations about the shop. The young girl, like any other eleven-year-old, had a large sweet tooth.

Later the brunette would admit that she wouldn't have gone into the store had she known who was in there.

* * *

Mirabelle Malfoy: first-year Slytherin, distant relation of the notorious Lucius Malfoy, fourth in her class academically but top of her class when it came to personality. As much as Keegan hated the other girl; it was impossible to ignore Mirabelle's charisma. Unfortunately, the girl's charisma meant that Keegan was considered an outcast by most of the members of her house. The war might be over, but Slytherin House would probably always have prejudice against anyone not of pureblood.

Keegan was stunned when she ran into Mirabelle in the sweet shop. The other girl bragged endlessly when she received word that her family would be staying with Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy for the Winter Holiday. She couldn't believe Mirabelle would choose to go anywhere that didn't involve attending some high-society function.

She also couldn't believe Mirabelle would dare to confront her in front of two Hogwarts Professors, two other adults and her sister.

"Winter," the girl said. Her nose was upturned and her voice was tinged with disgust. Peyton stared at her, surprised. She couldn't believe this girl was seriously attempting to insult Keegan. She had to have more intelligence than that!

"Malfoy," Keegan responded with the same tone. The brunette stood with her hands clasped behind her back and her chin up. She wasn't going to bow down before Mirabelle and her superiority complex.

"I figured you'd be returning to your Muggle parents for the Holiday," the blonde said. Keegan raised an eyebrow. "Surely you remember that my _adoptive_ parents passed early in October. I mean, you do make it your business to know these things, don't you?"

"A good witch always knows what is going on around her. I simply forgot about your . . . unfortunate circumstances."

"Yes, I'm sure you did. Out of curiosity though, what are _you _doing here? I figured you would not leave the side of your 'distant relations'."

Mirabelle scowled.

"Lucius and Narcissa had a Ministry function to attend today. As I am still underage, I was not able to go."

"Really? You mean Mummy and Daddy can't bend the rules for you as much as you say they can?"

"Mother and Father do not _bend rules _for me as you so eloquently put it. They simply use their influence to achieve things that lesser beings such as you couldn't hope to grasp in your life."

"Lesser beings, Malfoy? Let me ask you this. Who is currently top of our class at Hogwarts? Who manages to earn an average of thirty points a week for Slytherin? Who managed to turn their match into a needle by our second Transfiguration class?"

Keegan stopped talking. She smiled a little and released a chuckle. She knew that she'd one. Mirabelle couldn't argue with Keegan's logic. The pureblood girl was out Slytherin-ed in front of the Head of Slytherin House.

"Miss Malfoy, I suggest you leave quietly before I am forced to inform your parents of an altercation with a member of _your_ _own House._"

Mirabelle paled at Snape's intervention. She left the shop with a sheepish look on her face. A single glance at her a few minutes later and anyone would've been able to tell that the young Slytherin girl was flushed with anger.

Keegan glanced at her guardian and Head of House as soon as the Malfoy girl exited the shop. "I was completely in control of the situation," she said. Severus nodded. "I know."

If Keegan bothered to look further into his expression; she would have realized that Severus was actually proud of her.

Filius Flitwick certainly was.


	15. Asymmetriphobia

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing. I'm broke. It's J.K. Rowling and CO. that are the billionaires._**

_Chapter Thirteen: Asymmetriphobia- Fear of Mismatched Socks or Asymmetrical Anything_

_Chapter Fourteen: Asymmetriphobia- Fear of Mismatched Socks or Asymmetrical Anything_

Dinner took place in a private room in the Three Broomsticks that was similar to the way a common room was set up. Several comfy arm chairs and a couple of side tables. There were short one armchair. This issue was immediately remedied by the claiming of the largest chair by Peyton and Keegan. The two highly exhausted girls collapsed together in that chair. Emmeline smiled at them. It was always nice to see how in tune the sisters were to each other.

"This is not an… ideal situation," Professor Flitwick said. "These girls know no sense of stability or continuity and they have now been placed in an unfamiliar environment. The question is: what are we going to do about it?"

"The possessive relation in me wants to take Keegan and run," Remus admitted. "I can't do that though. The only option remains is this."

Remus stood up and moved directly in front of Severus.

"I cannot express my sorrow for what my friends and I did to you when we were at Hogwarts together. I know it has only been a few years. I know there has not been enough time passed to heal _any _wounds. I know that our actions had a lot to do with your choices at your graduation from Hogwarts. I'm sorry."

He swallowed.

"I don't expect you to like me. I can barely ask you to tolerate me. I only ask that you accept my presence, and that you not punish my niece for my being her relation."

Severus stood up. He eyed Remus's outstretched hand. He gave an annoyed sigh. "If your niece were anything but a Slytherin, I would not be so accepting." He very, very briefly shook Remus's hand, and immediately returned to his seat.

Keegan and Peyton looked at each other.

_This is going to be a _long _day._

"Miss Winter-"

"Keegan," the brunette cut Professor Flitwick off. "My name is Keegan, Professor. We're supposed to be family now, so you might as well use it- at least when we aren't in classes."

The diminutive teacher nodded his bearded head. "Very well, Keegan. Now, what do you find to be your favorite subject?"

"Given the knowledge that two of my professors are sitting at this table, I'm going to choose to leave that question unanswered."

No one noticed the Head of Slytherin House's slight grin.

"Very Slytherin of you, Cub," Emmeline muttered. Keegan smiled brightly in response. "Just because you're a Hufflepuff, Aunt Emma."

"Just because I'm a Hufflepuff, what, Child? Choose your words carefully."

"As you pointed out, I'm a Slytherin. I always choose my words carefully."

Peyton snorted. "You choose your words carefully about as well as you match your socks in the morning, Kee."

"I resent that statement."

"Keegan, you're wearing mismatched socks now."

"Nuh uh."

"Keegan, you're wearing flats! I can see your socks! One is green and one is silver."

"They're not mismatched. They'd be mismatched if I wore a gold one with silver, or red with green."

"You're supporting your House."

"Duh."

The adults all looked at each other. It was going to be a long few years.

"How is the week we spend at the castle before break ends going to work?" Peyton asked. Severus and Filius glanced at each other. They hadn't actually discussed it. Oops.

"You have four options," said Professor Flitwick. "A, you return to your dormitories for the week; B, you stay in my quarters for the week; C, you stay in Severus's quarters for the week; D, you split up and one of you stays with one of us while the other stays with the other for the week."

Peyton looked at Keegan. Keegan looked at Peyton. The two sisters shook their heads and looked at the Professors.

"Or, we could do all four options. We stay with you for a night, Professor Flitwick. We stay with Professor Snape for a night. Then we split up and alternate for two nights. Finally, we spend the last two days of break in our own dormitories."

"Are you considering going into to Peace Keeping, Peyton?" Professor Flitwick asked. Peyton shook her head. "No, sir. I'm going to be a Healer."

"What about you, Keegan?"

"I'm going to be an Auror, sir."

"That's quite an… ambition," said Professor Snape softly. Keegan looked at him. "Professor Flitwick asked me what my favorite subject was. It's Defense Against the Dark Arts. I'm equally as good in that as I am in Charms, Transfiguration and Potions. What else would I go into beside something that allows me to do all four?"

"I was not suggesting that your grades would not be high enough come your seventh year. I was more speaking of your proclivity for panic attacks."

"Oh."

Peyton saw the dejected look on her little sister's face. Unable to stand seeing that expression, she immediately rose to her sister's defense.

"I highly doubt, Professor, that my sister will be unable to overcome her anxiety to become an excellent Auror. In fact, I would be more surprised if she continued to have abnormally… violent panic attacks by the time she has finished her fourth year at Hogwarts. She's strong enough to beat it, Professor. Trust her."

Remus smiled at Peyton. Outwardly, he was glad for Peyton's defense of Keegan. Inwardly, he was ready to smack her for it. He hated the idea of Keegan becoming an Auror. It was too dangerous, too uncertain. He would rather die than lose his niece, either of them. He lost James and Sirius already, both of whom had been Aurors. He'd lost his friends, Frank and Alice who had also been Aurors.

It was too dangerous a line of work. While he was willing to support his niece (really his daughter) in any endeavor she chose to take on; that didn't mean he liked them. He would be much more content with Keegan following in Peyton's footsteps- straight to the safety of St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies.

* * *

AN: I'm so sorry this took so ungodly long. Blame school. Anyway, the next update should be within the month (Keegan meets the Weasley family). My actual next update will be on my Avatar the Last Airbender fic (since I've neglected that for almost a month) which is a Zutara fic. If that interests anybody, take a look. It'll be a short one and quite fluffy. As for Book One of the Seasons Saga, it only has seven more chapters plus an epilogue (which might be a two-part). Happy reading!


	16. Erythrophobia

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing. Everything belongs to Rowling and Co._**

* * *

_Chapter Fifteen: Erythrophobia- Fear of the Color Red_

Remus delivered Keegan to the Burrow with a certain hesitance. He didn't want to let her go. Keegan wasn't sure she wanted him to let her go. This was going to be the first time in two years (read: the first time since the orphanage) that Keegan didn't have someone she knew loved her with her. Before Hogwarts, it was Uncle Remus. At Hogwarts, it was Peyton. Now? Now she would have no one.

Well, she would have Bill. Did Bill actually count? Uncle Remus didn't think so.

Keegan didn't have time to think about it. They'd arranged to Floo into the Burrow, so Keegan was immediately in the house was they showed up. There were a lot of redheads. She recognized one- Bill. She knew of two of the others- Bill's parents: Arthur and Molly. Speaking of Molly…

Molly Weasley was a breath of protective mothering. By a breath, she meant a gust of wind, or a tornado. Yeah, tornado. Molly Weasley was a tornado of protective and affectionate mothering.

That made sense.

Arthur was on his way into the Ministry when they arrived. He very briefly greeted Keegan and Remus before leaving the house. Molly was putting breakfast on the table. Bill hugged Keegan tightly.

The table was filled with small red heads. Bill was, obviously, the oldest. Keegan knew the names of them; there was no way she could tell which name belonged to what child.

Molly insisted that Remus stay for breakfast. Keegan was glad for it. She might be more comfortable if he stayed just for a little while. He approved of the Weasley family. Remus said that Molly and Arthur both contributed to the side of the Light in the War. He told her a while ago that Molly could be trusted to take care of her. He explained that both she and Arthur were capable of caring for her and anyone else. He trusted them.

"Thank you, Molly, for keeping Keegan for the next two weeks," said Remus. Molly smiled brightly at him. "Not a problem, Remus. With the situation the lot of you are in, I'm willing to do anything to help you out."

Keegan debated for a moment whether she should cling to Remus or not. If she did, she showed vulnerability. In a house of four boys, that may not be the best idea. If she didn't, she had no gurrantee she had any comfort for the next week.

Also, her birthday. It was coming up soon. It would happen before the end of the month. She didn't know if she would be with her Aunt and Uncle for it or not. Would she be with the Weasley family? If so, she would probably just not say anything. Granted, Persepolis would probably be bringing her things from her family, but she didn't have to explain why, right?

She decided to sit next to Bill. It seemed only logical. Bill was her friend. She was his guest. Besides, it was time to prove that she could be independent. Her Uncle needed to see that he could count on her to be okay.

Breakfast was a noisy, messy affair. Of course, Molly had two toddlers, plus the twins who were only four, to contend with. Keegan and Bill tried to help as much as possible, but it was futile.

Baby Ginny was the least messy of the four youngest, and Keegan took a liking to her. Ginny seemed to return the sentiment, and Molly was both happy and reluctant to leave Ginny to Keegan's care.

Keegan got the feeling Molly didn't often get a break.

"I need to be going, Molly. Thank you for the excellent breakfast. Keegan, I need to speak to you for a moment."

The two stood silently for a moment next to the door leading outside the Burrow.

"You aren't a prisoner, Cub. You're under no obligation to stay here. If you find yourself uncomfortable, then get a hold of any of the four of us. Yes, I'm including the Professors. They take their position in this responsibly. If you have a panic attack or an asthma attack, I want to know. Don't hesitate to Floo call, or owl. You have Persepolis. I expect three owls a week- minimum. Peyton probably wants an owl a day."

Keegan smiled softly and nodded. She wrapped her arms around Remus's waist. "I'm going to miss you," she murmured.

Her Uncle hugged her in return. "I'll miss you too, Cub, but I'll see you soon."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Good."

Keegan watched as her Uncle departed. He was apparating out. She didn't want to think about how quickly he could be gone, but also she knew how quickly he could return.

"Hey, Keegan, do you want to help Charlie and I degnome the garden?" Bill ran up and asked.

Keegan's eyebrows scrunched together.

"What on _earth_ does that mean?"

Bill grinned mischievously.

"You'll see."

88

Keegan did see. She saw what it meant to degnome a garden. She saw what it meant to have six younger siblings to care for, to have a real mum and dad and to have a big family dinner all three meals of the day. She longed for it.

She had something though. Granted, she didn't have her family all together for three meals a day. She didn't have birth parents anymore. Maybe she had them, but there was no real tangible connection. She didn't have younger siblings, but she was kind of glad for that. Being unofficially adopted into Bill's family gave her enough little siblings.

Her two weeks at the Burrow were fun during the day. Bill introduced her to flying in a different way than their flying lessons at school did. He taught her how to actually act like a kid.

Keegan's nights at the Burrows were hell. Molly had put Bill into a room with Charlie and Percy to give Keegan a place to sleep. She was glad for the empty room. It allowed her a place to cry herself to sleep and scream and just panic.

She disobeyed her Uncle's orders every day. She never owled him about the attacks she had at night before bed. She never told him about the nightmares. After all, it was only at night that she freaked.

And freak she did.

88

Molly opened the door just a crack to try and figure out what was going on in the little girl's room. The sight broke her heart.

Keegan was curled up in a fetal position on her bed. Her body was wracked with sobs but she made no actual sound. Her hair was a mess. Molly was sure that if she got a look at her eyes they'd be rimmed with red.

She sucked in a breath when she saw the little dots of red on her sheets. Was the child so upset she'd caused herself to bleed? Molly decided to intervene. It seemed to be the only option.

She approached the child slowly, not wanting to scare her should she be trapped in the aftershocks of a nightmare. Keegan yielded to Molly's approach. The mother sat down beside the child on the bed.

"Where are you bleeding, dear?" She asked gently.

Keegan held out her hands. Molly breathed a sigh of relief. The blood came from the girl digging her fingernails into her palms. She wasn't _glad _that Keegan was bleeding, just glad that she wasn't bleeding from something she did on purpose.

Molly didn't dare pull out her wand to clean the wounds. Instead she found the first aid kit that Arthur insisted was needed. For once, his Muggle obsession was something good.

She cleaned the wounds on Keegan's palms and bandaged them tightly. "What's wrong, sweetheart?" She asked again as gently as she could.

"Nightmare. I'm sorry if I woke you, Mrs. Weasley."

"Nonsense, child. You can't help it if you have a nightmare. I'm the mother of seven, remember? I'm quite used to it."

Molly wondered if Keegan told anyone about the nightmares; she knew that Keegan had had more than just the one while in their home. She figured that Keegan couldn't have gotten away with hiding them at her own home- not if she woke up screaming every night. Her sister probably knew about them. It was possible that her Aunt did, and doubtful that the Professors would. Did her Uncle?

"Does your family know you get the nightmares, child?"

Keegan bit her lip. "Not recently. Peyton knows I used to have them. Uncle Remus has been woken up by them a few times before. Professor Snape knows I have them. Nobody else does though. Uncle Remus taught me a spell so that my dorm mates can't hear me as long as the curtains are shut on my bed."

Molly hugged Keegan tightly. "Oh you poor dear. Would you like a Dreamless Sleep Potion?"

"No, Ma'am. It's better to just get the nightmares over with."

Molly's eyes filled with tears. Just how plagued was this girl?

"Alright, would you like the door left open?"

Keegan hesitated.

"Yes, I think I would. Thank you."

"Not a problem, Dearie. Let me know if you need anything and get some sleep."

Molly left the room with the door cracked open. She was crying openly by the time she returned to her bed. When Arthur woke and drowsily asked what the matter was, Molly responded.

"Oh, Arthur, that child has been through far too much."

Arthur simply hugged his wife and chose to stay quiet.

* * *

AN: I lied. You guys get a new chapter of Seasons Saga instead of Avatar, but I SWEAR- Chapter Two of Avatar Saga is in the works. I promise. Also, shout out to chibi-Clar for commenting on EVERY chapter of this story. You have no idea how much I appreciate it.


	17. Arachibutyrophobia

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing canonical nor do I own any characters that belong to J. K. Rowling. Basically, anything noticeable belongs to her- not me. _**

* * *

_Chapter Sixteen: Arachibutyrophobia- Fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth_

The two girls and their guardians sat in a room dressed in dark blue and bronze. The brunette kept glancing around, taking note of the exits out of the apartment. The blonde kept an eye on the brunette, making sure the younger child didn't have a panic attack and go running out when she did so.

"You said you wanted to be an Auror, Keegan. Do you have any special talent when it comes to Defense Against the Dark Arts?" asked Professor Flitwick. Keegan looked at her hands for a moment. She glanced at Peyton. The older girl smiled encouragingly.

Keegan's wand was in a holster up her sleeve. It'd been an early birthday present from her Uncle, given to her mere moments before she left their house. She hesitated. Peyton looked at her pointedly.

"Just do it, Kee. He asked. Show him."

Keegan swallowed. She whispered the enchantment, conjuring up the happiest memory she could think of: the memory of Remus taking her from the orphanage.

Out of her wand came a wispy, silvery snake. The animal slithered (that was the only word to explain the snake's movement) around Keegan a few times before fading into thin air. When the spell completely faded, Keegan looked at the professors.

They'd been struck dumb.

"You cast a Patronus," said Snape.

Keegan nodded.

"You're eleven."

Keegan nodded.

"You cast a corporeal Patronus charm at the age of eleven, and your Patronus is a snake."

"Yes, sir."

"Merlin, what have we gotten ourselves into?" Snape asked the ceiling. Keegan grinned softly. "I'd ask Uncle Remus, Professor. He's the one that top me everything."

"When on earth did he teach you to cast that?"

Now Peyton laughed- loudly. When her laughter died, she answered the professor's question.

"When Keegan turned nine, Uncle Remus retrieved her from the orphanage. Two days later, he handed her the wand that belonged to her birth dad. He started teaching her magic from that moment on- something about wanting to make sure she was never in the position she'd been in at the orphanage. He trained her extensively in defensive magic and charms. Aunt Emma helped out a bit with potions. I did too actually. Anyway, Keegan didn't manage the corporeal Patronus until this last week we spent at home."

"Are you telling me, Peyton, Keegan, that this child has been using wand magic since the age of nine? Most children are incapable of doing so."

Peyton confirmed his suspicions. Snape had one question though. Something wasn't adding up.

"At the very beginning of the year, Keegan, you failed to brew a potion because you could not cast a simple fire charm. If your Uncle has been training you so hard, then why could you not cast that charm?"

"Stress, Professor. Think about it. A child who has very recently gotten used to a new environment, and now being forced to change environments yet again? She was stressed as all get out. I'm not surprised that she couldn't do simple magic."

Snape donned his classic look of annoyance at Peyton's answer. He didn't want the older girl to answer. She was an eagle. She was one of Flitwick's pets. Peyton Liana Winter was almost inconsequential- she would've been completely useless had she not been one of his snake's sisters. He didn't want Peyton to answer. He wanted Keegan to speak up for herself and answer. He knew now that she wasn't hopeless at magic- not that her recent grades had suggested anything like that.

"Miss Winter, kindly remain quiet when I ask your sister a question. Keegan, answer my question."

Keegan looked at her hands again. He would have to break her of that habit. Her hesitance portrayed her as weak. In this world, it would not due for a Slytherin to have any appearance of weakness.

"I was scared of you, sir."

Snape raised an eyebrow and gestured for the girl to continue.

"You're my Head of House. You talked to me the first night I was here. You seemed to expect things of me more than the other students. I'm a half-blood, not a pureblood like most Slytherins. I knew I had to prove myself so that I wouldn't have to deal with crap from the other kids. So I was nervous."

"Good, you should always be nervous, but you should _never_ show it."

A look of determination manifested in the girl's eyes. Peyton and Flitwick exchanged glances. It seemed to the two Ravenclaws that the snakes in the room might've just bonded. That was good. Very good.

88

"Peanut butter sandwiches for lunch?" Peyton asked Keegan. The gray-eyed girl perked up immediately. "That'd be great, Pey!"

Of course it would be great. Carina had always made Keegan a peanut butter sandwich for lunch while she attended Muggle school. It was nostalgic in a way. The only issue was the way peanut butter stuck to the teeth.

The professors had pretty much withdrawn from the girls. They were at opposite ends of the sitting room, each sitting in an armchair while grading papers.

"I didn't know your Patronus was going to be a snake, sis."

Keegan shrugged. "It makes sense in a way. I am a Slytherin after all."

"Yeah, speaking of being a Slytherin, there is something I want to talk to you about."

Keegan immediately guarded herself. "Yes?" asked Keegan cautiously. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I want to talk about your friendship with a certain blonde."

Keegan froze completely. "Peyton, let me make this clear. My only friends in Slytherin House are Ryder Shacklebolt and Alexandrina DiMercurio. Mirabelle Malfoy and Annora Brown make for occasional allies as do Julian Lancaster and Caleb Albright. But as for friends? I have four actual legitimate friends at this school: Bill, Isaac, Ryder and Drina. Don't try to take that away from me."

"I'm not trying to take them away from you, Kee. You have to understand something though. Alexandrina's family is full of blood supremacists. If, Merlin forbid, another war comes. You will be fighting on opposite sides."

Keegan clenched her hands into fists.

"Are you sure about that?"

Peyton's eyes widened in horror.

"You can't possibly mean you'd join _them_."

"I never said that. I'm making the point that you should assume that Drina would either. I trust her. Take my judgment and run with it. Don't make me choose."

"Right, because the choice between a girl who's been your friend for six months and the girl who has been your sister for two years must be so difficult."

"When you're a half-blood in a House of purebloods, it is."

Peyton stared at her sister.

The brunette walked out of the kitchen. Before approaching the professors, she turned back to Peyton. "Don't bother making me a sandwich, Peyton. I'll make other arrangements."

She then proceeded to ask the professors if it would be alright if she went to the library for a while. Seeing no reason to deny her, both Snape and Flitwick willingly granted permission- asking only that she be back before two in the afternoon. Keegan agreed and left moments later.

Peyton stood in the kitchen. One hand was still on the bread; the other held the peanut butter knife. No sandwiches were being made though. The only thing being made in that room were tears.

* * *

I

AN: I lied again. But this was done. I'm on a role with this one.


	18. Epistemophobia

**Disclaimer: I own except what J. K. Rowling and Co. don't own.**

* * *

**Warning: This chapter may be slightly more mature than others due to delicate subjects which might be triggers for some people. **

* * *

_Chapter Eighteen: Epistemophobia- Fear of Knowledge_

Brown hair blew in the wind. She sat on her bum. Her small, porcelain-like arms wrapped around the knees that were pulled up to her chest. Her eyes were wide open. She could've been petrified. She was staring into the West.

The Professor stood at the top of the hill, watching the girl watch the sunset. She and her sister were on thin ice with each other. The older was annoyed that the younger was being stubborn. The younger was upset that the older couldn't understand her. The Professor got the feeling that a lack of understanding between the two was not often an issue.

"I know you're there, Professor," called out the young girl. The Professor smiled. It was just a little smile mind, nothing near the size of the smile her Uncle might've had if he'd seen such a prime example of her observation skills. Her peripheral vision may have helped some; however, the Professor knew that he was positioned in just the place so that she could not see him. She could; however, sense him.

The Professor moved down the slope. A single fluid movement had him sitting next to her, watching the sunset as well. He found it mildly pleasant. In the last four years, his life had been far too chaotic to stop and enjoy the pleasantries of life.

"Why are you out here?" he asked. Keegan started to shrug before thinking the better of it. She pointed to the sky. "It's pretty."

"You're sitting in a foot of snow," he pointed out calmly.

"That doesn't change the prettiness of the sunset, Sir. I don't mind snow. My surname is Winter after all."

"Is the prettiness of the sunset worth the fact that we're both going to get pneumonia from being out in the cold like this?"

Keegan looked up at him, unsurprised to see genuine concern in his eyes. She was his ward after all. Yes, Keegan knew that she was Snape's. She knew that the same way she knew that Peyton was Flitwick's. There was no "joint guardianship". Snape was in charge of her life for the next six years (five- she reminded herself; she was twelve now). Flitwick was in charge of Peyton's for the next four.

Of course he was concerned about her. He probably didn't want to spend any of his precious time in the Hospital Wing waiting for her to recover. They could both spend their time better in a Potions lab. She couldn't do complicated potions- that was true. She could; however, do potions that her guardian didn't need to waste his time on.

"No one is forcing you to stay outside with me, Professor. It'll be my fault if I get pneumonia. Not that it really matters. Madame Pomfrey can probably heal it in a snap."

Keegan didn't add that she didn't really care if she got healed. It didn't really matter. Her lungs were bad already. What more could a little extra damage do? It'd be easier for everyone involved if they just stopped working.

"Don't you dare," hissed the Professor. Keegan's eyes snapped to his. Had he been looking her in the eyes? Was he using Legilimency?

"I do not need to be a Legilimens to know what a young, insecure girl is thinking, Miss Winter. You fight Anxiety on a regular basis. You are often depressed or dealing with Insomnia. You feel that Asthma and Anxiety make you weak. You wish not to be weak."

He glared at her and stood up. "Get up, Miss Winter. We will be going inside now."

Keegan immediately jumped to her feet. Her Head of House (not just her Head, but her guardian too) was upset. It was not a good idea to earn Professor Snape's ire. She certainly didn't want it. Merlin help her.

The Professor led her straight down to the dungeons and into his office. He gestured to the seat in front of his desk. Keegan sat down immediately. Best to not be hesitant.

"Why do you think the world is better off without you?"

Keegan swallowed. "Because then Peyton and Uncle Remus wouldn't have to jump through hoops to keep me around. I'm sick of waking them up with nightmares that cause me to scream at the top of my lungs. I'm sick of remembering that bloody orphanage. I hate the memories. I hate the knowledge that I'm not Bill. I'm not Drina or Isaac. I don't get to go home to two parents who love me and birth siblings that can't wait to join me at Hogwarts. I don't get that because they're all _dead_."

The Professor raised an eyebrow. "Was your mother pregnant at the time of her death?"

"The common story is that I lost my Mum and Dad that night, Professor. It's not true. I lost my whole family. What was never released to the public was the birth or death of my little brother- Declan. He was two at the time."

"How did he die?"

"How do you think? Do you think Bellatrix spared my brother?"

Tears welled up in the brunette's eyes. The Professor hesitated. He wasn't sure how to deal with a child's tears. Yes, he could deal with the tears of most children, but he wasn't responsible for those children. He had no ties to those kids beyond Hogwarts. Keegan, though, he would be seeing for a very long time. Legally, they were family. For some reason, that made her tears more important to him.

"He wasn't tortured. They didn't know he existed. I hid him in a closet in the upstairs hallway. They would never have found him if he hadn't cried out when he heard me scream. If I'd stayed quiet, Declan would be alive."

"Keegan, listen to me," the Professor began, "there is nothing you could have done to save your brother. I know how you're thinking. I know how we tend to rationalize the events that occur in our lives. You think you're responsible. You weren't. You didn't kill Declan. Bellatrix did. You deserve to live, and be happy. Do you honestly think your parents don't want that for you? Do you truly think that your Uncle and sister want you to die?"

Keegan whimpered. Her tears made soft streaks down her face. A moment later and she was crying on Snape's shoulder. Instinctively, the man wrapped his arms around her and allowed her to cry. Not that he would ever tell anyone about this interaction. No one needed to know that Snape could be affectionate.

"They don't want you to go anywhere, Keegan. Neither do Professor Flitwick or I. You have a long life ahead of you. You're going to do great things. Do you remember what you told the Headmaster? That we all have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy? It's your turn to make that choice. What path are you going to take? Are you going to lead yourself to complete and utter ruin? Or are you going to set yourself up to become one of the greatest Aurors to ever live?"

"Great," she whispered, "I want to be great."

"Good, because I know you can be."

* * *

AN: Okay, one more chapter and then a couple of chapters worth of letters. Welcome to the climax of the story, how may we help you?


	19. Pantophobia

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except the stuff that isn't canon. **

* * *

Chapter Nineteen: Pantophobia- The Fear of Everything

February, March, April and most of May passed before the tension between Keegan and Peyton began to fade. Despite her sister's warnings, Keegan continued to be friends with Alexandrina. There was a mutual insistence that the two professors and the sisters have tea together every Saturday. There never seemed to be any issues that needed to be discussed; not until the third Saturday in May.

"Keegan got a detention," Peyton blurted out when the obligatory question was asked. The obligatory question, of course, being: "did either of you get in trouble?"

The Professors both stared at Peyton before pinning their now displeased gazes on Keegan. "From who?" Snape demanded.

"Professor Kaplan."

"You got a detention from your DADA Professor?" Flitwick asked confused. Keegan looked down at her hands, making Snape hiss. That was something they'd been working on- making her appear more confident.

"Can we please not talk about it?" she pleaded. "I know you're both going to give me an additional detention for the one from Professor Kaplan; just give them to me. I don't see the point in having this conversation."

"The point of having this conversation?" Snape echoed. "Peyton, you're dismissed. If you wish to have tea tomorrow in place of today, feel free to have lunch with either of us tomorrow. Keegan, stay."

The sisters stared at each other. Peyton seemed anguished. She didn't know what to do. She'd probably crossed a line. She should've let Keegan tell their guardians herself that she had detention. It was none of her business. She shouldn't have betrayed Keegan like that.

Keegan looked betrayed; that was putting it simply. When Peyton rose from the table, the other girl looked at her sister pleadingly. Keegan shook her head, refusing to return her sister's looks.

The blonde left. Keegan crossed her arms. Her eyes blazed with defiance. She was just _done_.

"Why did you get detention? Does it have anything to do with the fifty points Slytherin managed to lose last week?" asked Snape.

Keegan remained silent.

"Keegan, tell me now."

She was quiet.

"Fine. You have detention with me every night until you decide to tell me what you received detention for. You will apologize to Professor Kaplan after class on Monday. This is only my punishment. Profesosr Flitwick will punish you as he sees fit."

Keegan looked at her sister's Head of House. The diminutive professor seemed disappointed. Keegan decided she didn't care. She was sick of caring about whether she was disappointing someone or not.

"I have nothing to add."

The Charms Professor said nothing more. Keegan stood up. "Fine. What time, _Sir_?" She demanded.

Snape raised an eyebrow. _'Clearly, the girl does not remember what it means to be respectful.' _He wouldv'e sighed aloud; that would require showing his feelings. "Immediately after you finish dinner. This does not give you a free pass to stay at the dinner table until ten o'clock at night. Six o'clock at the very latest."

Keegan scoffed. "Why show favouritism, Professor? Any other person would've been ordered to skip dinner."

"You aren't every other person."

"Right. I suppose that's the issue, isn't it?"

Keegan grabbed her satchel off the floor by the door. She left the room as quickly as possible. The door slammed shut with a vibrating bang. It seemed like the entire room shook. Knowing the way Hogwarts worked, that might not be too impossible.

"What are we going to do?" asked Flitwick.

Snape glanced at the door.

"We're going to do three things. First, we're going to talk to Professor Kaplan; second, we're going to talk to Peyton; and finally, we're going to help Keegan beat depression."

"Do you think that's the reason she's lashing out like this?"

"Peyton and Keegan have been fighting for over three months. How do you think that affects a child who already deals with mental disorders on a daily basis? Now, add in the stress of boarding school and losing your parents. It's not uncommon for teens, or pre-teens in Keegan's case, to deal with depression. It's even less uncommon for them to lash out because of it- or for any other reason."

"How do you know this?"

"I spent seven years in Slytherin, Filius. I was a Death Eater for two. I know exactly how teens act when dealing with depression, anxiety, PTSD and any number of other disorders."

"Good point. We should go speak to Isaiah."

88

"We need to speak to you."

Kaplan eyed the two professors. One was small, and generally good-natured. The other was quite tall, and had, possibly, the worst temperament in a person that Kaplan had ever seen. He did; however, know why the two were quite good friends. He knew why they were there.

"You wish to discuss Keegan, yes?"

"Yes," said Snape, "her sister let slip the information that you assigned her a detention. Keegan refused to tell us what for. She's been acting quite… odd for the last few days."

"I assume you're speaking of the more and more frequent incidences of her lashing out and being defiant and rebellious?"

"Yes."

"You want to know why she got a detention."

"Yes."

"Three strikes, gentlemen. Her first strike? Refusal to participate in a demonstration- the first time that this has happened all year. Her second strike? Walking out in the middle of a conversation? Her third? Allowing Miss DiMercurio to cheat off her test."

Snape breathed in sharply. _'One of my snakes cheating? Actually, I'm not upset about the cheating. Except, I'm upset about it because it's _my_ charge who is cheating. She should value her integrity more than that. No, I'm also upset because they got caught.'_

"Hence the detention from you and the loss of fifty points. Did she receive a zero on the test as well?" Snape wondered.

"No; however, both girls retook the test separately. Keegan received a perfect score. Alexandrina failed."

"Not unsurprising. It's quite obvious in Charms that Keegan is very gifted, whereas her friend seems to fall behind rather quickly," said Filius.

"Keegan has a detention with me every night until she decides to explain what happened to me. Do you know why she allowed DiMercurio to cheat?"

Kaplan raise his large, bushy, white eyebrows. "Keegan Winter is a half-blood with a notoriuously unstable living situation. Alexandrina DiMercurio is the daughter of a powerful Italian pureblood family. She let the girl cheat so she wouldn't be ostracized within her house."

The DADA Professor breathed in a deep sigh. "Look, Severus, Keegan is gifted. She is well and truly gifted in my class. I don't know much about her other questions. I think I have a suggestion to help her deal with her instability and depression."

"What?"

88

Somewhere else, deep in the heart of the castle in a deserted corridor, a girl collapsed on her knees. She was small. She was frail. Her entire face was blotchy and red, clearly from the strain of sobbing.

She was broken, and bruised. She held her knees tightly to her chest, clinging to herself. _'What is happening to me? This is not me. I don't lash out at Professors. I don't let Drina cheat on tests. I don't just… I don't do this kind of thing!'_

She cried, knowing no one could hear her. She was in the farthest part of the castle that was still inhabited by witches and wizards. No one would find her, not without the help of some kind of magical map of Hogwarts. She only knew of one in existence; it was currently sitting in a filing cabinet in Filch's office.

She was right. No one happened upon her. No one living at least.

All Slytherins knew what the sound of clanking chains meant: the Bloody Baron was approaching. He was unsociable toward anyone but Slytherins. Granted, the Gray Lady was also unsociable toward anyone but those of her own house.

The Bloody Baron was kind to the Slytherins, or as kind as he could be to them. It was also as kind as he was allowed to be to them. Slytherins didn't always like having others be kind to them. It was not something they were used to; not knowing they could always handle.

The Bloody Baron, while not a nice being, looked out for his House. No one was allowed to beat on _his _students without facing his wrath. He always seemed to know when a Slytherin was in trouble.

Keegan was no exception.

The girl sniffled as the ghost approached. When he came to a stand in front of her crumpled form, chains still clanking, she looked up.

"What do you want, Sir?"

"Why are you crying, Child?"

"I got in a fight with the Professors."

"Why?"

"I got a detention from the DADA professor. I refused to tell them why. It was because I cheated on a test, or rather, I let another girl cheat off me. It's just- it's so hard to fit in in Slytherin when you aren't a pureblood. I can't always handle it."

"Do you get bullied?"

"Not to my face. No one dares to confront me just in case Professor Snape is watching. He's my guardian, and everyone is scared of him after all. They spread rumors about me though. They say that I do things with Isaac and Bill. That's not true at all! We're just friends."

"I believe you. What have you attempted to do about it?"

"I try to fit in, or blend into the background. When people forget about you, they don't spread rumors either."

"Is that what you want? To be forgotten about?"

Keegan stifled a laugh. That was a ridiculous question. Hadn't she already been forgotten about?

"Sir, I don't think there's anyone left who hasn't forgotten me."

"No? Obviously, your guardians care enough to fight with you. I do believe you have an older sister that cares. Your friends, Bill and Isaac, care. I cannot say the same for the young DiMercurio. She has gotten you in trouble many times. She does not help you fit in in Slytherin."

"Yes she does," Keegan protested. Her hands wrapped around each other. Her fingers tangled and untangled. She held her stomach to try and ignore the anxiety pains. "She's a pureblood; I'm not."

"You know, Child, being a Slytherin isn't just about being a pureblood. It's about ambition and cunning."

"How would you know?" She snapped, "You are dead."

Biting her lip, she immediately apologized. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

The apparition didn't seem to care. He immediately disappeared. Keegan buried her head in her hands. The tears began falling again. _'Why do I do that? I just screw everything up. I always do.' _

She cured into herself. The fetal position was one that symbolized a young child seeking comfort and not finding it. Keegan tried not to scream. She bit her lip, drawing blood. There was no point any longer. All that mattered was the ability to keep her pain from affecting other people.

88

"What do you think is wrong with her?" McGonagall asked, concerned for the young half-blood. Snape shook his head.

"Keegan is a very troubled child who has dealt with much in her young life. She carries guilt. Guilt over not saving her parents, guilt for not protecting Declan. Keegan has dealt with far too much for one her age. She's left the denial behind and moved on to anger and more depression. And I can't blame her."

"Can we help her?"

"She's going to have to help herself."


	20. Keraunophobia

Chapter Twenty: Keraunophobia- Fear of Thunder and Lightning

The sound of clanking chains became loud outside Snape's office. The Professor looked up just as the Bloody Baron drifted through the wall into his obvious. A simple gesture of the hand told the Baron to say whatever he needed to say.

"One of your first years is considering death."

The statement was blunt and vague, but Snape knew exactly who it was referring to. A second later, Snape was on his feet. His face suggested that he felt nothing. Anyone who knew him, and knew him well; however, could tell that he was, in fact, quite worried for his young charge.

"Where is she?"

"In one of the northern corridors on the seventh floor. Near the Come and Go room."

Snape nodded. "Fine. Get Minerva, Albus, Filius and Poppy. Inform them that I will meet them in the Hospital Wing immediately. Also, tell Filius he may wish to retrieve Miss Winter's sister from her dormitory."

Snape took off. Quite literally. The Prefects who happened to be patrolling that night (including Mister Adrian Brown) followed him. The Potions Professor doing something as undignified as running was an uncommon sight to say the least.

The Professor found the young girl easily enough. Keegan was hugging herself tightly, tears streaming down her face. She was shaking like the ground in a Californian earthquake. Not that he'd ever been to California.

She didn't acknowledge him. He didn't acknowledge her lack of acknowledgment. He simply cast a diagnostic spell. When he realized she wasn't injured, he sat beside her. The girl hugged him tightly. There was nothing to do but return her hug and hold her while she cried.

* * *

Keegan sat with crossed arms on a couch across from another couch. She was in the Headmaster's office along with Uncle Remus, Aunt Emma, Professor Flitwick, Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape. They wanted her to see an emotional mediwizard. She figured it would be the equivalent of a muggle psychiatrist. She didn't know why they couldn't just send her to a psychiatrist. He, at least, would prescribe medications that didn't taste like toilet water.

"Keegan, love, you aren't stable," Remus attempted to state the obvious in a diplomatic manner. Snape sneered. "Billiant, Lupin, tell her she's _unstable. _That's what every child wants to hear."

He looked at the small brunette. "You aren't unstable, Keegan, whatever your Uncle says. You have suffered severe trauma both physically and mentally under the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange. You were treated with neglect and abuse in an orphanage for two years. You aren't unstable; you are the victim of unfortunate circumstances that could've been handled in much better ways."

"What's wrong with me?" She whispered. Snape ignored the onlookers intruding on the conversation.

"There is nothing _wrong _with you, Keegan, but nothing has ever been done to help you either."

"Severus," Professor Dumbledore said, "I think the solution here is quite clear."

Emmeline nodded. "The Headmaster is right. It's obvious."

"What's obvious?" Remus asked.

"That Severus should have complete and utter guardianship of Keegan."

Remus opened his mouth immediately to protest. Emmeline held up a hand.

"Wait a second, Remus. Look at it this way. Who understands Keegan? Who is Keegan actually willing to speak to? Who has been through situations similar to ones that Keegan has dealt with? If Keegan were a werewolf, Remus, then this would be your specialty. That is not; however, what is going on here. It's not as if you won't be able to see her. It's just, we need to think about what is best for her."

"Is changing her living situation _again_ really what's best for her?" Flitwick inquired.

Keegan glanced up at him.

"Professor, I think it was quite clear from the beginning that I was no more your charge than Peyton was Professor Snape's. It's not changing anything really."

She didn't care anymore. It didn't matter. They were just going to pawn her off on person after person until she simply gave up herself. She was just so done. Nothing mattered anymore. They weren't going to help her. She didn't need help. She didn't want help.

She didn't care.

* * *

He wasn't speaking to her. He just stalked ahead of her and held the portrait open to his quarters. He watched her walk through, made sure she didn't run again. It didn't matter. She wouldn't get far even if she tried.

Snape shut the door with a wave of his wand. He gestured at the chair across from his couch. "I want you to do something," he ordered. She tilted her head. What in God's name did he want her to do now?

"Tell me your life story."

She could do that.

"I was born in January of 1969…"

It was a long process. She described what little she remembered from before the death of Romulus and Aster Lupin. She described the toys she played with, how she remembered flying on a broom with her dad's arms wrapped around her, and knowing that her Uncle had visited every weekend.

She described the death of her parents. He already knew the entire story; she told it again. She explained about how she tried to hide Declan, but didn't manage to hide with him in time. She told him how she felt when she realized that she hadn't saved him, and that she'd only survived because Lestrange thought she was dead.

She talked about the orphanage. She talked about the abuse, or what Snape called abuse- she still didn't think it could be classified that way.

She told him about her Uncle Remus taking her away from the Orphanage. About Dumbledore telling Emmeline Vance to find her a home. About living with Carina and Liam Winter for two full years before coming to Hogwarts. About having a sister who loved her. About how weird it was to have a family who didn't hate her, didn't blame her for her parents' deaths or her brother's.

She told him about her first months at Hogwarts. About feeling bad about the death of her adoptive parents, but not feeling the pain as deeply as her sister did. About becoming friends with Bill Weasley, Isaac Eranfeld and Alexandrina DiMercurio as well as the other kids in her House and Year. About fighting with her sister over her friendship with Drina. About fighting with Drina about her life choices.

She explained her most recent days. How depressed she felt. How she felt that everyone had given up on her. How she felt that she'd given up on herself. How she felt about Snape taking her in, and knowing that he cared even when he didn't act like it.

She told him everything, and he listened.

_**The End.**_

* * *

_**AN: **_*Hears the sound of determined rioting*

No, no, no! You've got it all wrong. This isn't actually "the end" no matter how dramatic I made it look. This is, simply, the end of the first part of Keegan's journey. There will, I believe, be three epilogues to this story before I actually hit that lovely complete button. Part One is almost fully written, it will be the summer between Year 1 and 2. Part two is going to be a series of letters between Keegan and others about her second year. Part Three will be the same except about the third year. After that, I will continue to work on TAS and when I'm done with that (it only has between five and seven chapters left), I will start writing Seasons Saga: Spring. Never fear, no matter how long it takes, Keegan will finish her ENTIRE journey.


	21. Epilogue: Part One

**Disclaimer for this chapter and the one before it: I don't own anything that JK Rowling and Co. came up with. **

* * *

Epilogue Part One: Summer between Year One and Year Two

Snape reluctantly allowed Keegan to visit her friends and family as often as she chose. A week was spent with the Weasleys. Another week was spent with Isaac's family. It was easiest for Keegan to spend time with Isaac. She understood Muggle technology the best next to Isaac himself.

She spent almost a month with Alexandrina's family in Italy. Peyton had been really upset, Keegan remembered. Peyton didn't like her spending time with Drina, but they'd stopped fighting so much over it.

This time, it wasn't the friend Keegan was spending time with that matter, it was when she chose to do so. Peyton's birthday was the fourteenth of July. That year it was a Monday. Keegan had been in Venice for Peyton's birthday. She'd brought home several amazing presents for her big sister, but the presents did nothing to make up for her sister's anger at Keegan not being there.

She'd tried to talk to her Guardian about it, but Snape had had no sympathy. He simply told her that Keegan had made her choice. She chose to miss her sister's birthday. Her sister had every right to be mad at her.

She found that happening a lot actually. Snape was no help when it came to Keegan wanting some sympathy for something. He was not one to give out pity. He was not one to accept pity. He wasn't even sympathetic to any causes.

He was a good guardian though, she couldn't deny that. The first thing he'd done when they settled in Spinner's End for the summer was to take away anything she could hurt herself with. In the beginning, she'd been royally upset about that. She'd claimed that he didn't trust her, that he thought she was suicidal or that he thought she was stupid.

It had taken almost two weeks for her to sit down and listen to him explain it rationally. She smiled fondly as she remembered it.

"Why are you doing this?" She whispered.

He was regulating her diet. He was watching how she exercised. He made sure she socialized. He studied her reading and educational habits. He watched her with the eye of a hawk, making sure she was healthy and relatively happy.

"Because you are my ward. When the Headmaster decided to give me sole custody of you, you essentially became my child. I will not have a child who is unhealthy in any form: mental, physical or emotional."

"I'm not unhealthy."

"No, you just need some assistance. I'm going to give you that assistance."

Keegan bowed her head.

"Alright."

She understood Snape now, as well as anyone could ever understand him. He acted out of concern for her, and did exactly what he thought was best. There was no input on Keegan's part, except when it came to what she wanted to do when.

She'd been surprised by the normally stoic professor. It wasn't that he was suddenly all rainbows and sunshine at Spinner's End. It was more that there was the occasional compliment. There was the very rare turn up at the corners of his lips that almost constituted a smiel. There were the three-hour long debates over obscure magical topics.

Even more surprising had been the Muggle culture. The Professor, it turned out, was a fan of the theater. They spent several nights during the summer watching one play or another. Keegan's favorite had been Shakespeare's _The Tempest_. He took her to quite a few museums as the summer progressed. It was interesting, Keegan found, to go around to Muggle monuments and see how it differed from the Wizarding variations.

The final surprising thing, something Keegan would be entirely grateful for, was the lack of anxiety. Maybe it was finally having a firm, stable living environment. Maybe it was having a reasonable amount of support from both family and friends. Or maybe it was something else entirely.

Whatever it was, Keegan only had two Anxiety attacks that summer. They would be some of the last she ever had.

August 25th saw Keegan delivered to the home of Remus Lupin, Emmaline Vance and Peyton Winter for the remainder of the Summer Holiday. Snape took her aside just before he apparated away. The conversation was short.

"You'd best behave. Any punishment given by your Aunt or Uncle constitutes a detention from me. Am I understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"You will continue the same regime you've been intstructed to carry out this summer. There will be no deviation."

"Yes, sir."

"You will do exactly as you are told when you are told to do so."

"Yes, sir."

"You will make up with your sister."

w Keegan swallowed and hesitated. The look on her guardian's face; however, prompted her response. "Yes, sir."

"Good. I will see you at the Welcome Feast."

He left then. Keegan made her way back into the sitting room where her family waited. She saw their smiles and relaxed. This would be okay after all.

Peyton was silent for three days. She spoke to no one. She looked at no one. She chose not to eat dinner with the family. She slept on the couch rather than share a room with keegan. Keegan, despite her best Slytherin efforts, was doing nothing to change Peyton's attitude.

After those three days of being ignored, Keegan snapped.

"You know what, Peyton? I'm done. I'm so completely done. I don't care if you ignore me. I don't care if you hate me for the rest of your life, but there is absolutely no reason to punish Uncle Remus and Aunt Emma just because you're upset with me. Until you lose your attitude, and apologize to our Aunt and Uncle, you aren't my sister. I'm done apologizing. I'm done trying. You trying to make me feel guilty is only hurting yourself."

Peyton stared at Keegan. They all did. No one in that house was used to the brunette snapping in that manner. None of them were used to her standing up for herself like that. The Keegan they knew would have collapsed in an anxiety attack before yelling at Peyton.

Remus found himself to be proud. He was glad Keegan had found her backbone. He tried not to feel upset that it was Snape who helped her find it. It didn't matter who guided her. It just mattered that she was guided.

Keegan was growing up to be a strong woman. She would be someone every adult in her life was going to be proud of.


	22. Epilogue: Part Two

**Disclaimer: Let's do a math problem. Am I J.K. Rowling? No. Do I own HP Franchise? No. What does that equal? Exactly.**

* * *

Epilogue Part Two: Second Year

_September 2, 1983_

_Dear Uncle Remus, _

The Sorting Ceremony last night was quite interesting. Slytherin received six new male students, and seven new females. As expected, eight of the eleven new students are obvious purebloods: Rosalind Nott, Morgan Flint (A boy, and not terribly bright either), Isaiah Brown (Distant relation of my year mate- Annora), Leopold Avery, Henry Blishwicke, Kiera MacDougal, Cassandra Greengrass and Sebastian Fawley (A total surprise to most. I've been told that Fawleys are usually sorted into Hufflepuff. Sebastian is the first Slytherin in centuries).

There were three others though, all half-bloods. Professor Snape seemed happy with me because I took the three of them under my wing so to speak. Drina was kind of annoyed about it, but Julian, Ryder, and Caleb (my other two Slytherin friends- you remember me talking about them, right?) think it's brilliant. Anyway, their names are Elodie and Luc Bloch (they're twins) and then there is Nicholas Jameson. Elodie and Luc are actually French and for whatever reason didn't attend Beauxbatons. Nicholas is just a half-blood, like me. It's kind of cool, and really nice to have someone else around who understands.

I'm sure you know this, but prejudice still runs rampant in Slytherin. It's more so against anyone of impure blood in other Houses. Slytherins try not to discriminate against each other, after all, with everyone discrimination against us, we have to stick together. It's not quite as bad for people like Nicholas and I. Adrian Brown told me last year that half-bloods weren't as bad to be around because we had at _least _one magical parent. In my case, I have a pureblood mum and a half-blood dad. Adrian said I didn't even really count, so no one bothers me.

I just hope no one bothers Nick. His mum is Muggleborn and his dad is a Muggle.

All my love, Keegan

_September 10, 1983_

_My Darling Cub, _

I admit to finding your letter a little disturbing. I knew that Slytherin was still full of many blood supremacists. I did not realize that they discriminated against half-bloods as well. You should never take blood status into account when figuring out who your friends are, Cub. Look at your group of friends now. Drina and Bill are both purebloods. Isaac is Muggleborn. These things shouldn't matter to you. Do not let anyone change the way you view the world. Ever.

You've had your first couple of days of classes by now. How are they? Who is your new DADA teacher and how is s/he? Is the Professor treating you any differently? Is he harder on you? Do you care for your current classes?

Let me know how you're doing. Let me know if you need anything. Your Aunt will be sending along a care package in a few days.

All my Love, Uncle Remus

_October 4, 1983_

_Dear Aunt Emma,_

Thank you so much for the care package! I loved it. The biscuits were shared amongst my friends and I. Nick, especially, appreciated the taste of homemade cookies. I think his Dad or Mum probably made them a lot before he came to Hogwarts.

Elodie and Luc keep telling us about all these different types of French cuisine. They talked about one a lot- escargot? Is that really a thing? Like, do people really eat snails? That's so weird. And slightly disgusting. But mostly weird.

Will you let Uncle Remus know that I don't think I'll be able to write that much this year? Second year is really important because I have to figure out what extra classes I want to take. I'm thinking Arithmancy, Ancient Runes and Magical Theory. Magical Theory isn't an OWL class, but I think it will be an interesting extra thing to do.

All my Love, Keegan.

_November 13, 1983_

_Dearest Keegan,_

Have you made up with your sister yet? You've been at odds for almost three months. The two of you really need to make up. You won't be happy until you do.

Love, Aunt Emma.

P.S. I informed your Uncle. He is not pleased, but accepts your reasoning.

_November 20, 1983_

_Dear Aunt Emma &amp; Uncle Remus,_

I regret to inform you that I have received a detention. I'm not going to say too much about it because Professor Snape is going to send you a letter. He's probably going to order you to send me a Howler. I deserve it. Needless to say, but I will anyway, this situation has something to do with Peyton and I.

Please don't be disappointed in me. You still love me, right?

I love you, Keegan.

_November 23, 1983_

_To Whom It May Concern,_

It is to my great displeasure to inform you of a detention Keegan has received. She not only received a detention but lost her house fifty points. Her Housemates are not as upset as they could be; however, simply because Keegan will have regained those fifty points in a matter of days. The detention was from Professor McGonagall, Keegan's Transfiguration Professor, for hexing another student. This student was her sister, Peyton.

Miss Winter has refused to confess what exactly happened in the situation. As such, she will have another detention every night she does not explain it. Due to the seriousness of this altercation, if you should wish to visit the school and have a conference, please respond and schedule a meeting.

-Professor Severus Snape, Potions Master at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Head of Slytherin House

_November 24, 1983_

_Keegan Cassiopeia Lupin Winter (Snape?),_

You are in so much trouble, you haven't even begun to understand! Neither Remus nor I have the right to ground you anymore; however, we are sure that the Professor will take our opinion into account when punishing you. Rest assured, you _will_ be punished for this young lady. You are so out of line it's atrocious. You went from being a perfect student to hexing another stood- your sister for Merlin's sake!

You will explain yourself, and you will make the necessary apologies. Immediately.

-Aunt Emmeline and Uncle Remus

_November 30, 1983_

_Aunt and Uncle, _

I hexed Peyton because she told me that Drina was a no-good git. She said that Drina was going to screw me over in the long run, and that Drina was just using me. I'm sorry I hexed her now, but she shouldn't have said all that about Drina. Drina is my best friend, and I think Peyton is just jealous of the relationship the two of us have.

I'll be staying with Professor Snape for the Winter Holiday. Please let him know if you have specific days you want to see me. He'll have to work out any kind of special scheduling with you and Professor Flitwick as well.

Love, Keegan

_December 25, 1983_

_ Cub, _

Happy Christmas from Aunt Emma, Peyton and I.

I'm assuming you and Peyton have reconciled? Peyton is less grumpy and distant than she was over the summer, and maybe hexing each other was all you needed (Yes, that sounds bad- even to me).

Are you doing better, Little Miss Slytherin? Has Snape helped you at all with your anxiety and such?

Love you munchkin, Uncle Remus

_January 25, 1984_

_ Family (Yes, this includes Peyton),_

Thank you for my birthday presents yesterday. I'm a little sad that we couldn't arrange to meet, but the Professor and I had something we had to do. By that, I mean we had to portkey to Venice to retrieve the bloomslang skin a contact got him. So I spent my birthday in Italy (No, Peyton, I didn't see Drina).

When we got back, the Professor allowed Bill and Isaac to eat dinner with us in his quarters. They stayed at Hogwarts over the break for whatever reason. Isaac I don't understand, but I think Bill just enjoys the peace at Hogwarts.

Anyway, Bill and Isaac pooled their money to buy me some candy. The Professor bought me a journal. He said it was to write down my nightmares and dreams. He also said it was _not _a diary to be filled with "the whimsical thoughts of a silly, doe-eyed school girl". I laughed at that, but he glared at me so I got quiet real quick.

Thank you for getting me more Art supplies, and also the books. I love books. I didn't understand the one defense one though, so I talked to Professor Anghart about it. Right, I haven't talked about her yet, have I? Well Professor Kaplan retired at the end of last year after explaining to me that if I ever wanted (or needed) any kind of help involving DADA, all I had to do was owl him. He said I was one of the best students he'd ever had, and certainly one of the most enthusiastic.

Anyway, Professor Anghart is this year's Defense Professor. She's an Auror, or she was before she got injured during the War. She's quite nice, but nowhere near as good as Kaplan was. I like her well enough anyway. Apparently Kaplan sent her a letter when he found out she'd taken the position, telling her not to stunt my education or face the consequences.

It's kind of amazing how much my teachers care about me. Also, have you ever had tea with Professor McGonagall? I thought she didn't like me because I was a Slytherin. Turns out she didn't like me in the beginning because she thought I was arrogant and spoiled- I have no idea where she got that impression. I had tea with her a few days ago, and she beat me at chess. She beat me again, and again, and again, and well, you get the point.

Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout had dinner with the Porfessor and I the other day as well. It's so weird. They told me to call them by their first names, well, Flitwick had already done that, but he said it again, at least when we're in private. So, I'm on a first name basis with like three of my professors. It's quite weird.

Love, Keegan

_May 5, 1984_

_Uncle and Aunt,_

I've been a really bad niece the last year or so. Actually, I've been totally awful. I've been horrible to my sister and her friends. I've been distant and grouchy and just all around bitchy.

I've blamed it on exam stress. I've claimed just being generally upset. I've not been good, to any of you, and I'm sorry.

I'm going to spend the summer with Professor Flitwick, as he is- technically- my current guardian. I'm hoping that doing this will snap me back into being myself. I'm hoping that doing this will let me get back to being the niece you all care about, and the sister that I hope Keegan still loves.

I'm sorry for the way I've acted. I truly am.

Peyton.

_July 14, 1984_

"Did you really think I would miss your birthday two years in a row?" Keegan asked softly when she landed in the living room her sister stood in. Her sister's friends were there. Remus and Emmeline and Professor Flitwick (and his family).

The only one missing had been Keegan, and by some definitions- Snape. Keegan wasn't going to miss her sister's birthday a second time, even if they were at odds.

Peyton started crying immediately upon seeing her sister. Keegan threw her arms around the older girl. She had no reason to cry. Emmeline ushered everyone out of the room and into the kitchen while the sisters reunited.

Keegan simply hugged Peyton.

"I missed you," she murmured.

Peyton silently agreed.

* * *

AN: Here you go...


	23. Epilogue: Part Three

**Disclaimer: I'm not J.K. Rowling.**

* * *

Epilogue Part Three: Third Year

_September 1, 1984_

Keegan collapsed in her train compartment. The other occupants were Drina, Bill, Isaac, Luc and Elodie. Chatter immediately began amongst the friends. Talk of summer activities, new courses this year and adventures to be had filled the cabin. Julian, Caleb and Ryder showed up halfway through the train ride, and made the already crammed seating further claustrophobia.

"Don't you boys have anywhere better to be?" Drina demanded.

Julian and Caleb chuckled at Drina's demand. "Of course we do," Julian said.

"But it's much more fun to be in here with you lovely ladies," Caleb finished.

Ryder said nothing, simply shaking his head. Keegan found herself watching Ryder more closely than the other two boys. _It was an odd occurrence_, she thought, _that I should find Ryder so fascinating when he simply another of my male friends. _

She bit her lip and felt a deep blush settled over her cheeks.

_He is, simply, another of my male friends, right? _

Drina and Elodie didn't fail to catch Keegan's blush. Silently, the two foreign witches came to an agreement to make Keegan see what they both saw. A simple glance at Julian and Caleb told them that the rather thick duo had come to the same conclusion.

* * *

_October 11, 1984_

"Miss Winter, Mr. Shacklebolt, Mr. Lancaster, and Miss Brown, remain behind after class," Professor Snape ordered in his calm voice.

Keegan stiffened immediately, and almost ruined her potion by pausing her stirring. Ryder prevented the destruction of their shrinking solution. The Professor had paired his students together based on grades this year.

As two of the students with highest grades in the class, Ryder and Keegan were made partners. Drina had happily been partnered with Bill when Keegan's partner was her so obviously devoted crush.

Because Keegan and Ryder were totally crushing on each other, and everyone could see it. Everyone but the two of them.

The class was over rather quickly. Keegan and Ryder bottled their potion, pleased by the final product. Would the Professor be pleased? They doubted it. He was rarely pleased by anything, even if it was something his snakes did.

"You wanted to see us, Professor?" Annora made the mistake of asking.

The Head of Slytherin House rolled his eyes. "Obviously I wanted to see you, Miss Brown. I would not have told you and your cohorts to remain after class if I didn't. Now, we have an issue. Can any of you tell me what the issue is?"

Annora, Keegan, Julian and Ryder all looked at each other. No, none of them had any idea. No, none of them were willing to tell the Professor that. Continuous stares placed on Keegan prompted her action.

"No, sir, I don't think any of us can."

"Very well. The five of you are prospects for Prefect come fifth year."

"Professor?" Keegan cut in, "why are we discussing this now?"

"I will explain that if you would let me, Miss Winter."

Keegan bowed her head. "My apologies, sir."

"Now, the Headmaster has come to the conclusion that students in the running to be a Prefect should be alerted at the beginning of their third year in order to prep them for the responsibilities that may come to them fifth year. In order to continue to be considered for prefect, you must maintain grades above acceptable. You must have fewer than fifteen detentions in a single year, and lose less than fifty points. Those stipulations begin in your third year."

The Professor looked directly at Keegan.

"Above all else, you must have impeccable character and recommendations by the Professor who is your Head of House and the one whose class your grade is lowest. In the event that your grades are the same in all classes, all teachers submit a letter of recommendation for you."

Keegan swallowed. That seemed like an awful lot of work just for the status of Prefect. She knew that the Professor's look at her meant that he expected her to be a Prefect though, so she squared her shoulders and became determined to see it through. She'd become a Prefect if it killed her.

* * *

_Christmastime_

"Uncle Remus!" Keegan shouted. She hugged the thin man immediately upon his arrival in the Professor's quarters. Her Aunt and sister followed behind rather quickly. It was going to be an odd dinner. Keegan's friends: Ryder, Drina, Julian and Bill would be there. Professor Snape's colleagues: McGonagall, Pomfrey, Sprout and Flitwick would be there. Keegan's family: Remus, Emmeline and Peyton would be there. It would be a… interesting mix of family and friends.

Professor Snape refused to admit that he was friends with his colleagues, but Keegan knew better. They all showed up for tea at least three times a week (and Keegan was getting much better at chess as a result). They bickered like old married couples (specifically Snape and McGonagall- Keegan decided it was quite funny). They unofficially instated themselves as a family, built around Keegan.

Remus helped the Professor enlarge the dining table and conjure chairs.

"Thirteen, Severus?" Emmeline asked. "Is this a wise number?"

Professor Snape scoffed. "If you wish to become a prophet, please go have a conversation with Trelawney upstairs. If it would make you feel better; however, I suppose we can place the children at one table and the adults at another."

Keegan made a face. "Professor, most of us are thirteen about to be fourteen. I hardly think we're children."

"Keegan, to a man who is twenty-four and your guardian, you will always be a child," Emmeline said. Keegan pursed her lips.

"Well, what about Peyton? Is she a child? After all, Professor Snape isn't her guardian anymore and she's sixteen."

"Yes, Keegan, Peyton is a child as well," Remus said with a sigh.

Peyton rolled her eyes as she placed six chairs at one table and seven at the other table. "Keegan, leave me out of your silly little arguments. Better yet, get the place settings and help me set the tables."

"Peyton," Keegan said.

"Yes?"

"You're a witch," the teen said slowly.

"Oh, right."

A wave of Peyton's wand, and she wordlessly cast a spell that would summon the items necessary and set the table. The adults in the room stared at her. They hadn't seen a witch as young as her cast a charm that complicated, well, ever. They were impressed, whether Snape would admit it or not.

"Miss Winter, are you, by any chance, intending to pursue a mastery in charms?"

"No, Professor Snape, I intend to be a Healer. I would like my specialty to be based in charm inflicted injuries."

The Potions Master nodded. "Good."

* * *

_May 21, 1984_

Keegan shook her head wildly. This was insane. She wouldn't do that! How could they accuse her of this? This feeling of betrayal made her heart clench and then beat rapidly. How could they believe she would do this?

Didn't they know her? How could they possibly believe her capable of cheating on an exam? She wouldn't do that! That wasn't like her. Impossible. Something deeper was going on here. Something beyond her imagination.

Maybe the Professors were all confunded. Yes, that made sense. That was what was going on here. They were all confunded and that's why they believed she would cheat on a test.

"I didn't do it. I swear to Merlin, I didn't cheat!"

"Miss Winter, your answers are _exactly_ the same as the answers of Miss Prescott."

Keegan's steely gaze met the twinkling eyes of the Headmaster.

"I'm sorry, Headmaster, but I refuse to continue this conversation without the presence of Miss Prescott, our Heads of Houses and our guardians."

The Headmaster leaned back in his throne-like chair.

"Very well, but I hardly think this is necessary."

Fifteen minutes later, Professors Snape and Flitwick stood in the Headmaster's office along with Keegan, Julia Prescott and Miss Prescott's parents: Angeline and Marcus.

Keegan stood at Snape's side, as closely as she could while remaining properly professional.

"You're accusing Keegan of cheating," Snape stated.

The Headmaster nodded. "Actually, Professor Blakely accused her of cheating."

Professor Blakely was this year's DADA teacher.

"Did it not occur to you to also accuse Miss Prescott? Or are you going to allow yourself to be blind-sided by the prejudice views against Miss Winter?"

"My daughter is a Ravenclaw, Professor. She would not cheat on an exam," Marcus Prescott insisted.

Keegan crossed her fingers and hoped this tactic would work.

"Headmaster, can I ask you a question?"

Dumbledore sighed. "Go ahead, Miss Winter."

"What did you put into place this year?"

Everyone stared at her. The Headmaster raised his eyebrows.

"You put into place an order to tell any students who were being considered for the Prefect position their fifth year to be notified during their third." Keegan glanced at her Professor. "Professor Flitwick, what students in Ravenclaw were notified?"

"Mr. Jameson, Miss Lockwood, Mr. Case, Miss Fawley and Mr. Hill."

"Not Miss Prescott?" Keegan asked innocently.

Professor Flitwick smiled at one of his favorite students. "Indeed not."

"Professor Snape, what students in Slytherin were notified?"

The Potions Master glared down at her with a glint in his eyes. The message was clear. This had better work or she would be in serious trouble.

"Mr. Lancaster, Mr. Shacklebolt, Miss Brown and you, Miss Winter."

Keegan nodded slowly.

"Headmaster, what qualities must a student exhibit to be suggested for the Prefect position?"

The Headmaster sighed- again.

"Hardworking, responsible, respectful, honest, loyal to their House, good academics and overall good citizenship."

The room was unsettlingly quiet.

"That's what I thought," Keegan murmured, "Headmaster, my guardian is a Professor at this school. Why on earth would I need to cheat on an exam? Surely if I was having trouble in any class, I would notify my guardian and ask his assistance? Not, of course, that I believe I have special treatment because my guardian is a Professor. Any student can ask any teacher for assistance. No, I'm merely pointing out that there's absolutely no reason I would need to cheat on an exam."

She paused for dramatic effect.

"Let alone a DADA exam."

She drew her wand and uttered two words.

A silvery, wispy snake appeared out of the tip of her wand. The Patronus slithered around the room. Its head bumped against Keegan's hand once, twice, and then disappeared.

"Why would a student who has been able to cast a corporeal Patronus need to cheat on a Defense exam?"

Her message was clear. Memories were looked into. The conclusion was obvious. Year-long grades were looked at. Teachers were spoken to.

It was Julia Prescott that cheated, not Keegan. And, of course, the Headmaster had known that all along.

Later that evening, Keegan earned twenty points for Slytherin for getting herself out of a problem in a perfectly Slytherin manner. The points came from one Filius Flitwick. At the same time, he removed one hundred points from his own house for cheating, and then attempting to frame another student.

* * *

_June 30, 1984_

"Professor," Keegan began, "can I go out?"

Snape's eyebrows slowly rose as he looked at the fourteen year old. First, he read her face. There was hesitance, dishonesty and fear. Then, he looked at her attire. Skinny jeans, trainers and a shirt that was cut far too low. His upper lip curled in distaste. He looked at her face again and detected makeup.

"Where, exactly, do you think you'll be going?"

"A coffeehouse. I'm meeting Peyton."

"You're lying. Go to your room. I'll deal with you later."

Keegan sighed and cursed softly.

"Keegan Cassiopeia, you are only making your situation worse."

She glared at the Professor and stormed off to her room.

"That child is going to be the death of me."

He threw Floo powder into the fireplace, uttered Lupin's address and stepped out of the fireplace when he arrived. "Peyton," he growled. The older Winter girl looked up at her annoyed Professor.

"Yes, Professor Snape?" She asked as innocently as she possibly could.

"Who was Keegan intending to meet?"

The blonde's face fell.

"Um…"

"Peyton Winter, I swear to Merlin, tell me now or you'll be serving detention with me every evening for the entirety of your Seventh year."

"Ryder Shacklebolt. She was going to meet Ryder Shacklebolt."

"A date?" Snape asked with clear disgust in his tone. He'd liked the Shacklebolt boy. Now he was going to have to be even harsher toward him simply because the boy liked his ward.

"Yes, Professor."

"Very well. Do not expect Keegan at your party, Miss Winter. I have a strange suspicion that she will be grounded until she's seventeen."

"Yes, Professor."

Snape returned to his quarters within Hogwarts and doled out the girl's punishment. Upon seeing her horrified gaze, he amended the punishment slightly (you're going soft, Snape) to allow the girl to attend her sister's birthday.

"Don't think you can lie to me, Keegan."

"Trust me, Professor, I won't try it again."

End Year Three.

* * *

AN: So, we get to see what Keegan is aiming for, a little bit of Slytherin tendency and some actual parenting from Snape, also we get to see Keegan acting like a normal kid by having a crush. I do hope this solidified the knowledge that I do NOT intend to pair Keegan with Bill. My effort with this story have been to add characters where there weren't any but remain as canon as possible. It seems like it's impossible for Harry's time at Hogwarts to be canon when Keegan exists in combination with Snape, but I assure you, it will be. In order to make canon happen, Keegan will NOT be paired with Bill. Bill will be with Fleur. As it stands currently, Keegan is probably going to end up with Ryder. If anyone has an issue with that, well, sorry, but I don't really care. Anyway, there will be a fourth part to the epilogue (probably up today). After that, I have a different fanfic to finish before I begin Seasons Saga: Spring.


	24. Epilogue: Part Four

**Disclaimer: I'm not J. K. Rowling. I don't own Harry Potter.**

* * *

Epilogue Part Four: Fourth Year

_November 15, 2015_

"I hate fourth year," Keegan groaned. The fourteen-year-old collapsed in a heap on a couch in the corner of the Slytherin Common Room. The corner was reserved for fourth years, but the only ones there currently were Keegan, Drina, Ryder, Julian and Annora.

Keegan sat very close to Ryder. Probably too close to be proper, but Keegan didn't really care. She liked Ryder. He liked her. What else mattered? They were only fourth years, so she wasn't worried about having Professor Snape's approval. That didn't matter yet. It wasn't like he was trying to propose or anything.

"Why do you hate fourth year, Kee?" Drina asked.

Keegan sighed. "Because Professor Emerson is an arse who doesn't believe I'm even halfway decent at DADA and still hasn't approved my request to join the Dueling Club. McGonagall is beating _my_ arse with all this extra work she's giving out in preparation for fifth year. Ancient Runes and Arithmancy suddenly got hard this year, and Care of Magical Creatures is no longer a joke. I hate my life."

Keegan stretched out on the couch. She placed a couch cushion on Ryder's lap and proceeded to lay down with her eyes closed. Too his credit, Ryder didn't bat an eye. He was used to this. Keegan had been quite stressed this year and it wasn't abnormal for her to take a nap immediately after lessons ended.

"What about Potions?" Julian asked softly.

"What about Potions?"

"Is it hard? Easy?"

"Potions is potions. What else can I say about it?"

"Yes, Mr. Lancaster, what else could she say about it?"

Keegan shot up like a rocket at the sound of Snape's voice. Her cheeks turned to a thorough shade of red. This was awful. She'd already been grounded over the summer for trying to see Ryder. The Professor was probably going to be even more pissed now that she'd been hanging out with him right under his nose.

"Detention, Miss Winter and Mr. Shacklebolt. Miss Winter, you'll serve with Professor McGonagall after dinner tomorrow night. Mr. Shacklebolt, you'll serve with Mr. Filch on Saturday."

The Professor left in a sweeping motion, black fabric fluttering behind him. Ryder and Keegan let out simultaneous groans when they collapsed back into their previous positions as couch potatoes.

* * *

_January 24, 1985_

"I'm fifteen now," Keegan whispered, looking up at the stars. "I'm fifteen now, Mum, Dad. You've missed nine years."

Keegan bowed her head. "I miss you, and Declan, every day. I miss you so much it's unimaginable. I want you back sometimes. At other times, I don't because I don't want to give up what I have right now."

"I have Uncle Remus and Aunt Emma and Peyton. I've got Drina, Bill, Isaac and all my other friends. I have friends, ones who honestly care about me. And I've got Ryder. I think you'd approve of him. I don't quite know how he made it into Slytherin, but I assume it has something to do with his ambition to change things. He's also a pureblood so I guess it could make sense. Anyway, he's really intelligent, honest and loyal too. He's kind to me and he's respectful to others. I really like him, and I hope you guys are okay with it."

She laughed softly. "I just wish Professor Snape would be okay with it."

"Anyway, I'm up for Prefect next year. I've got O's in all my classes right now and I've only lost twenty points so far. I don't know if I'll get it, and I'm worried someone will call favoritism and that'll mean I won't get it, but I'm trying really hard."

She stared up at the stars, wondering how her family was.

"I hope you're proud of me."

"I imagine they are, Keegan."

She pretended not to hear Snape's words, and tried not to realize that Snape heard everything she said.

* * *

_August 2, 1985_

"Mail's here," Keegan muttered as the owls flew in through the open window. Six letters landed on the table. Five of them were addressed to Keegan.

There was one from Uncle Remus, Peyton, Drina and Ryder. The one on the bottom was the one that caught her eye. It was from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and seemed quite a bit thicker than normal.

_Miss Winter,_

_I am pleased to inform you that you have been selected to serve as Prefect for Slytherin House. Your school record shows that you have exhibited resourcefulness, cunning and ambition which Slytherin House have long been lauded for._

_We are certain that you will continue to be a model for your peers and will take your new responsibilities seriously. You will attend a Prefect's meeting during the train ride on the way to the school, and will be required to patrol in pairs during the school year three to four nights a week. You will be called upon in any circumstance to lead your House and assist your Professors. _

_Enclosed you will find your Prefect Badge. Wear it at all times on your school robes. It brings you a new level of responsibility and requirements for leadership. Please remember that it is a privilege to be a Prefect and you can lose this privilege. _

_Sincerely, _

_Severus Snape_

_Head of Slytherin House_

Keegan squealed. Snape sighed. Keegan frowned.

"Won't they think I only got it because I'm your ward?" She asked softly.

"Keegan, Prefects are chosen for each House by all the professors at Hogwarts. You would not have gotten the position if it were a matter of nepotism. The real world may work based on a status of blood, but Hogwarts is not. You're a Prefect because you've done everything right, because you deserve to be one. _Not _because you're my ward."

Keegan nodded slowly.

"Yes, sir."

She got up to head to her room so she could read her other letters and write back to her family.

"And Keegan?"

"Sir?"

"Ryder is the other Slytherin Prefect, and I do approve of him."

* * *

End Year Four.

End Winter.

* * *

AN: So, I'm very sad to say the first book of this series is officially over. Please favorite, follow, review and all that. Thank you to everyone who has supported this fic. You have no idea how much I appreciate it.


End file.
